F-35A proving its worth at Red Flag combat exercise
An Air Force weapons load crew assigned to the 34th Aircraft Maintenance Unit, Hill Air Force Base, Utah, prepares to load a GBU-12 into an F-35A Lightning II aircraft at Nellis AFB, Nevada, Feb. 1. Airmen from the 388th and 419th Fighter Wings at Hill are participating in Red Flag 17-01. Red Flag is the U.S. Air Force’s premier air-to-air combat training exercise. This is the first F-35A deployment to Red Flag since the Air Force declared the jet combat ready in August 2016. (U.S. Air Force photo/R. Nial Bradshaw)