With a globe of light illuminating each wingtip, and a fierce tongue of fire spouting from beneath, this hovering aircraft has been compared to an extraterrestrial visitor.
It is the latest test of the high-tech warplane that the U.S. and its allies are funding to maintain the West’s aerial dominance far into the 21st century.
Eerie: The lights and jet of the F-35B Joint Strike appear to glow green as seen through a night-vision camera
The F-35B appears to hang stationary above the deck of the USS Wasp, in this flight test filmed on August 24
The high-tech jet lowers toward to flight deck, in a test the pilot said went ‘extremely well’
The F-35B Lightning is the short take-off/vertical landing (STOVL) variant of the radar-evading Joint Strike Fighter – a collaborative development funded by the U.S. and eight of its major allies.
The landing shown in the video was carried out by U.S. Marine Corps test pilot Lieutenant Colonel C.R. ‘Jimi’ Clift, a Harrier pilot by training.
‘It all went extremely well,’ he said. ‘Eight successful landings in one night, so we’re tracking favorably along the learning curve.’
Take-off: During the 18-day long ship trials, which began on August 14, two F-35Bs were to conduct a series of tests to determine the aircraft¿s suitability for sea-based operations
The movable afterburner at the rear of theF-35B means it is also able to take off from very short runways
