U.S. Marines on a Japanese Carrier

On October 3, two U.S. Marine F-35B fighters did something utterly common, yet historic. They landed on the deck of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force’s (JMSDF) ship Izumo off the southeast coast of Japan—the first landing on a Japanese carrier by a U.S. fixed-wing aircraft since World War II.

The flights tested modifications to the ship, which ordinarily launches helicopters, to accommodate the short-takeoff, vertical landing F-35. Among the data captured during the test was the effect of the jet engines’ heat on the deck surface. Japan is acquiring up to 42 of the F-35B model from manufacturer Lockheed Martin.