Fifth-generation F-35A Lightning II fighter jets took off and landed on a public highway for the first time in history

As part of Exercise Baana 23, the Royal Norwegian Air Force's fifth-generation F-35A Lightning II fighter jets made the first ever landing on a motorway. The event took place in Finland.

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The Finnish Air Force's F/A-18 Hornet aircraft occasionally practice takeoff and landing on public roads. Now the Royal Norwegian Air Force's F-35A Lightning IIs have done the same.

The ability to land and take off from the highway helps realise the concept of dispersal. It is believed that in the event of a real conflict, large airfields and military infrastructure would be under attack, so fighters would have to use small airfields with unprepared runways and civilian motorways.

The goal of the dispersal concept is to make it as difficult as possible for the enemy to destroy the aircraft when it is on the ground. The F-35A Lightning II participated in the exercise alongside the Finnish Air Force's F/A-18 Hornet. Immediately after landing, ground personnel were refuelling the fighters.

This is not the first highway landing for the F-35 Lightning II in general. However, the Americans used the short takeoff and vertical landing version of the F-35B. The conventional F-35A never landed on a motorway. They were equipped with a parachute system in case of insufficient braking during the exercise.

Lockheed Martin has delivered approximately 1,000 fifth-generation fighters to customers. By the summer of 2023, they had flown a total of more than 650,000 hours, of which the Norwegian F-35A accounted for approximately 20,000 hours. The company plans to build more than 3,000 aircraft and the total cost of the programme is estimated at $1.7 trillion.

Source: Forsvaret