Trump, Trumps the Chinese

U.S. Navy Deploys F-35B To Pacific In Show Of Strength To China, North Korea




A F-35B aircraft landed on the amphibious assault ship USS Wasp for the first time in the Indo-Pacific for the first time on Monday. (Photo/Reuters)

On Sunday, fighter jets landed on an amphibious assault ship at an undisclosed location in the Pacific.

The Navy touted the move as a new era of weaponry in air and sea capability, and one of the most significant leaps in war-fighting for the Navy and Marine Corps.

The F-35B was assigned to the 31st Marine expeditionary unit based in Okinawa, Japan and will provide support to operations in the region.

The deployment comes in response to North Korea's nuclear ambitions, and China 's aggressive dominance over the South China Sea.
http://www.oann.com/u-s-navy-deploys-f-35b-to-pacific-in-show-of-strength-to-china-north-korea/




A detachment of F-35Bs, the U.S. Marine Corps' short take-off and vertical landing (STOVL) variant of the supersonic fifth-generation F-35B Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter, deployed for the first time this week aboard the Wasp -class amphibious assault ship USS Wasp currently operationally deployed in the Indo-Pacific region.

"VFMFA-121 [Fighter Attack Squadron 121], assigned under the Okinawa-based 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, will remain embarked aboard Wasp for a regional patrol meant to strengthen regional alliances, provide rapid-response capability, and advance the Up-Gunned ESG concept," the service said in a March 5 statement.

"VMFA-121 pilots are scheduled to conduct a series of qualification flights on Wasp over a multi-day period. Following qualifications, the F-35B's and 2,300 Marines that make up the 31st MEU will deploy aboard ships of the Wasp Expeditionary Strike Group [ESG] for follow-on operations in the Indo-Pacific region as part of a routine patrol to strengthen regional alliances, provide rapid-response capability and advance the Up-Gunned ESG concept."

The Up-Gunned ESG concept is meant to boost the combat power of amphibious ready groups.

The USS Wasp , commissioned in 1989, has a crew of over 1,000 officers and sailors and can embark around 2,200 Marines, as well as smaller amphibious assault crafts, and around 31 aircraft, including F-35Bs, AV-8B Harrier IIs, MH-60S Knighthawk helicopters, AH-1Z Viper helicopters, and MV-22 Osprey tiltrotor aircraft.

http://navynews.co/2018/03/06/f-35b-stealth-fighter-deploys-for-1st-time-aboard-u-s-navy-ship-in-indo-pacific/