Marine Corps F-35Bs with Marine Fighter Attack Squadron (VMFA) 121, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, depart Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Ariz., to transit the Pacific en route to Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan, Jan. 9, 2017. VMFA-121 is the first operational F-35B squadron in the Marine Corps, with its relocation to 1st Marine Aircraft Wing at Iwakuni. The F-35B was developed to replace the Marine Corps’ F/A-18 Hornet, AV-8B Harrier and EA- 6B Prowler. The Short Take-off Vertical Landing (STOVL) aircraft is a true force multiplier. The unique combination of stealth, cutting-edge radar and sensor technology, and electronic warfare systems bring all of the access and lethality capabilities of a fifth-generation fighter, a modern bomber, and an adverse-weather, all-threat environment air support platform.
Source: Marine F-35s relocate to Japan from Southern California – DVIDS
