MCAS Miramar's second stealth-fighter squadron hits military milestone

It’s a bird, it’s a plane! Well, not quite.

It’s one of Marine Corps Air Stations Miramar’s fighter jets preparing to declare initial operational capability, also known as IOC.

The Miramar-based Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 311 (VMFA-311) is one of just two squadrons in the Marine Corps flying F-35C Lightning II jets. They are manufactured by Lockheed Martin and are part of the F-35 family. The F-35B is most commonly known for being able to land vertically, but its relative, the C, is the United States Navy’s first stealth fighter designed for aircraft-carrier operations.

“This jet is fast, it’s reliable, and it does everything the Marine Corps needs, “ Sgt. Matthew Willford, an aviation ordnance technician with VMFA-311, told NBC 7. “It is a big milestone for not only the ordnance community in this squadron but the squadron as a whole, seeing we have the capability to do such things and carry it through.”

Willford added that each jet can carry close to 20,000 pounds of ordnance. Before each flight, five to ten ordnance technicians load them up and ensure the safety of the pilot and aircraft, but that is only a small fraction of the people who are involved in the squadron’s successes. There are roughly 200 people in VMFA-311. They call themselves the Tomcats or Fighting Tomcats, and the name boasts a long legacy dating back to the 1940s with notable pilots, such as baseball star Ted Williams and astronaut and U.S. Senator John Glenn.

“You know, we started with one aircraft and about 84 Marines, " Lt. Col. Michael P. Fisher, the commanding officer of VMFA-311, told NBC 7. "Not a lot of infrastructure and now we’re declaring IOC about a year and a half later."

It’s giving us our best bid for success against our enemies.

-Capt. Joshua “Shakespeare” Falgoust, F-35C Lightning II pilot

To declare initial operational capability, a squadron needs to achieve milestones that focus on training, personnel, equipment and the number of jets, among other factors. Fisher said the squadron far surpassed their markers, but now only have a total of six F-35C jets and still need two more to declare full operational capability or FOC.

“Even though this month is a great month — we’re achieving IOC — we’re not stopping until we hit FOC,” Fisher said. “So that’s our next milestone and where we’re going to.”

VMFA-311 is one of just two squadrons in the Marine Corps flying F-35C jets. They are part of a transition away from F/A-18 Hornet jets to something with more technological capabilities.

“The F-35C is an amazing weapon platform,” Capt. Joshua “Shakespeare” Falgoust, an F-35C pilot in VMFA-311, told NBC 7. “You have a lot of say in the air, and you’re able to attack lots of different targets in multiple different ways.”

However, Falgoust added, it is also one of the challenges of the jet, “being able to absorb all of the information that it provides,” he said.

The other squadron with these jets, VMFA-314, is also Miramar-based and has already achieved FOC and deployed.

“We share spaces with them, we share hangars, obviously share lessons learned and things like that,” Fisher said. “When we first started up, they helped us get qualified to make sure we were familiar with the aircraft and ready to operate on our own, and now we’re operating on our own organically.”

It could be a few more months until the squadron moves past the midway point and is considered FOC, but it is pacing ahead of schedule and plans to continue that way, according to Fisher.

“Us getting ready for IOC is just the way that we get ready to go out and deploy,” Falgoust added. “It’s giving us our best bid for success against our enemies.”