The U.S. Air Force’s new fighter jet is inching closer to combat-readiness by proving itself lethal against drone targets.
An F-35A pilot made the first air-to-air strike, or “boola boola,” from the fifth generation stealth jet, the F-35 Joint Program Office announced in a statement Monday.
“It’s been said you don’t really have a fighter until you can actually hit a target and we crossed that threshold with the first air-to-air weapon delivery of an AIM-9X. This successful test demonstrates the combat capability the F-35 will bring to the U.S. Military and our allies,” Maj. Raven LeClair, the Air Force test pilot who made the shot, said in the statement.
“We want to ensure operators will receive the combat capability they need to execute their mission and return home safely — we cannot compromise or falter in delivering this capability,” LeClair said.
LeClair shot down the drone with one of the two AIM-9X missiles loaded under the F-35’s wings during live-fire tests off the coast of California Thursday. “Boola boola” is the traditional radio call when a pilot shoots down a drone, the statement said.(RELATED: The Latest F-35 Problem: It Is TOO Stealthy)
The Air Force is ramping up weapons testing on the F-35 to ensure that the 3F software targeting system is ready for deployment, the statement said.
The 3F software, which was supposed to be able to detect and track threats on its own, has not worked as expected, leading to expensive redesigns. While the software doesn’t work perfectly, the Air Force announced last week that with some modifications, the current software functions well enough for combat.(RELATED: The F-35 Doesn’t Know What’s Shooting At It)
The military is still testing its fifth-generation fighter jet after technical issues delayed the delivery of the jets for several years. The Air Force expects to finally declare the first 12 planes combat-ready before Dec. 2016.
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