Legendary Moments in Military Aviation: F-35A

Tuesday, October 12, 2021

Atlantic Trident 21 Exercise, Mont-de-Marsan airbase France

The "Atlantic Trident 2021" integration exercise was coming to BA118 at Mont-de-Marsan airbase in the Southwest of France. This is the third in a series of Atlantic Trident exercises involving aircraft from the United States of America, France, and the United Kingdom. The previous two had been held in 2015 and 2017 at Langley-Eustis Airbase in Virginia. This was the first outside of the USA and was held between the 17th and 28th of May 2021.

The aircraft participation list looked very respectable, with F-35A USAF, F-35B USMC, Eurofighter (Typhoons) and Hawks from the RAF, and home-based Rafales, Mirage 2000, Alpha Jets and PC-21 FAF.

The exercise would also call on a large amount of support aircraft.

17-5268 F-35A 421stFS/388thFW "Black Widows" USAFRC.

With fifty latest-generation aircraft practising combined simulated raids within French airspace, this was a chance to promote standard procedures in high-intensity air combat.

The USAF F-35s were from the 4th Fighter Squadron based in Utah and comprised aircraft from the 388th Fighter Wing and the 419th Fighter Wing with its reservist airmen.

Firstly, I am giving time to the USAF as they arrived days ahead of the exercise and have a transit story of their own.

They arrived at Mont-de-Marsan on Monday, 10th May. Over the previous weekend, numerous reports of their support tanker movements were circulating on internet forums. They departed Hill AFB early Monday morning and arrived overhead BA118 that evening. Excellent images were captured as the second wave "TREND 21-26" passed overhead Newcastle in the UK at 26,000 feet, with one chick refuelling from support KC-135T 58-0072 "ROMA64" and four others tucked around it.

See the link below.

https://www.fightercontrol.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?f=16&t=204603#p1295381

They arrived in two cells: TREND 11-16 and TREND 21-26.

17-5261 F-35A 34thFS/388thFW HL "Rude Rams".

They comprised 5X F-35A from the 4th FS HL "Fighting Fuujins".

3X 34th FS HL "Rude Rams."

4X 421st FS AFRC "Black Widows."

17-5248 F-35A 421stFS/388FW HL "Black Widows"

335/4-IJ Rafale B EC001.004 leads one of the exercises morning multiple launches. Mont-de-Marsan town rattled and reverberated under the power of collective fast jets launching in numerous waves during the exercise.

15-5196 F-35A 4thFS/388FW HL "Fighting Fuujins".

The only fiscal year 15 airframe, all others f/yr17.

335/4-IJ Rafale 'B' EC01.004.'Gascogne' SPA 79 "Tête de Loup" C/S F-UHIJ.

334/4-II Rafale 'B' EC02.004. 'Fayette' SPA 167 "Cigone de Romanet" C/S F-UHII.

323/4-HT Rafale 'B' EC01.004. 'Gascogne' BR 66 "Faucon Eygptian" C/S F-UHHT.

308/4-HA Rafale 'B' EC01.004 'Gascogne' SPA 79 "Tête de Loup" C/S F-UHHA.

124/30-GC Rafale 'C' EC03.030 'Lorraine' SPA162 "Tête de Tigre" C/S F-UHGC.

329/30-ID Rafale 'B' EC03.030 'Lorraine' SPA162 "Tête de Tigre" C/S F-UHID

325/4-HX Rafale 'B' ETR03.004 4B3 Aquitaine "Hibou" C/S F-UHHX.

110/30-IN Rafale 'C' EC03.030 SPA38 "Chardon Lorraine" C/S F-UHIN

109/4-IM Rafale 'C' ETR03.004 C/S F-UHIM.

654/30-ID Mirage 2000D ECE01.030 "Côte d'Argent" BR27 "le Tigre" C/S F-UGID.

The Patrouille de France arrived on Wednesday, 26th May, for a base display the following lunchtime, along with four ship flypasts by the French Rafales and American F-35s.

105/4-HE Rafale 'C' EC01.004 Prev EC01.030 2.GB1/25 "Bison" C/S F-UHHE.

327/4-HZ Rafale 'B' EC01.004 SPA37 "Charognard" C/S F-UHHZ.

127/30-GF Rafale 'C' EC01.030 "Côte d'Argent" BR128 "le Scarabée Blanc" C/S F-UHGF. Ex 7-GF "Provence" at Al Dhafra.

E168/8-FP Alpha Jet EE03.008 "Côte d'Or" SPA65 "Chimére d'argent" C/S F-UGFP.

E68/8-MO Alpha Jet EE03.008 SPA? Not known C/S F-TEMO.

325/4-HX Rafale 'B' ETR03.004 4B3 Aquitaine "Hibou" C/S F-UHHX.

324/30-HW Rafale 'B' EC03.030 "Lorraine" C/S F-UHHW

131/30-GJ Rafale'C' EC02.030 "Nornadie-Niemen" SPA93 "Canard Col Vert" C/SF-UHGJ.

Then the USAF F-35s.

17-5253 F-35A 4thFS/388FW HL "Fighting Fuujins" USAF.

17-5252 F-35A 4thFS/388FW HL "Fighting Fuujins" USAF.

17-5261 F-35A 34th FS/388th FW HL "Rude Rams" USAF.

17-5270 F-35A 421stFS/388thFW "Black Widows" USAFRC.

17-5243 F-35A 4thFS/388FW HL "Fighting Fuujins" USAF.

Mission complete.

17-5268 and 17-5270 run and break.

17-5268 F-35A 421stFS/388thFW "Black Widows" USAFRC.

17-5270 F-35A 421stFS/388thFW "Black Widows" USAFRC.

17-5243 F-35A 4thFS/388FW HL "Fighting Fuujins" USAF.

17-5253 F-35A 4thFS/388FW HL "Fighting Fuujins" USAF.

17-5268 F-35A 421stFS/388thFW "Black Widows" USAFRC.

146/XR TBM700 ET00.041 "Verdon" 1 Esc. "GAEL" from BA107 at Villacoublay/Vélizy.

17-5238 F-35A 421stFS/388thFW "Black Widows" USAFRC.

17-5261 34thFS/388thFW HL "Rude Rams" USAF.

158/62-IR CN235M-200 ET01.062 "Vercours" SPA BI 55 "Lévrier" C/S F-RAIR.

Four Dassault Rafales from EC01.004 "Gascogne" from Saint-Dizier Robinson arrive back overhead Mont-de-Marsan.

308/4-HA Rafale 'B' EC01.004 'Gascogne' SPA 79 "Tête de Loup" C/S F-UHHA,

323/4-HT Rafale 'B' EC01.004 'Gascogne' BR64 'Faucon Egyptien' C/S F-UHHT.

352/4-FS Rafale 'B' EC02.004 'Gascogne' SPA96 "Gaulois" C/S F-UHFS.

335/4-IJ Rafale 'B' EC02.004 'Gascogne' SPA 79 "Tête de Loup" C/S F-UHIJ

04/709FK PC-21 EAC 00.315 C/S F-RBFF from BA709 Cognac/Châteauoux Bernard.

09/709FK PC-21 EAC 00.315 C/S F-RBFK.

Support aircraft for the exercise were drawn from BA123 at Orléans/Bricy with A400M and C-130H, BA125 at Istres/Le Tube C-135FR and A330MRT, BA702 with its EDCA-36's E-3F's and BA120 at Cazaux with its EH01.067 'Pyrénées' EC725R2's 'Caracals'.