1st Japan-built F-35A fighter crosses Pacific for US checks

January 11, 2018

Tokyo- The first F-35A stealth fighter assembled in Japan by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd. flew across the Pacific Ocean to the US mainland in November last year, informed sources have said.

The cutting-edge fighter was sent for final inspections in the United States to see whether the Japanese-built aircraft meets required standards.

Japan's Defense Ministry plans to procure 42 F-35 fighters and start deploying them at the Air Self-Defense Force in March this year.

After the inspections, the Japanese-built jet will be moved to Luke Air Force Base in Arizona for flight training of ASDF pilots dispatched to the base.

The aircraft was assembled at Mitsubishi Heavy's Komaki South Plant in the town of Toyoyama, Aichi Prefecture, central Japan.

It arrived at the ASDF's Misawa base in Aomori Prefecture, northeastern Japan, on Nov. 2 last year for safety checks and left for the United States on Nov. 6, according to the sources at the US military and the Japanese ministry.

The aircraft reached Naval Air Station Patuxent River in Maryland, flown by a US military pilot. It received aerial refueling during the flight over the Pacific.

The US Defense Contract Management Agency is checking whether the Japanese-built aircraft meets standards equivalent to those for F-35A jets produced by Lockheed Martin Corp., the main manufacturer of the state-of-the-art fighter.

Such confirmation work in the US mainland is required only for the first unit. Jiji Press