F-35 Lightning II jet to make maiden British flight
"The F-35 Lightning II will make its international debut in July at the Royal International Air Tattoo in Fairford and in the same month will also fly at the Farnborough International Air Show....
...The
Royal International Air Tattoo is open to the public from 11-13 July and
Farnborough International Air Show is open to trade visitors from 14-18 July and open to the public 19-20 July."
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/f...british-flight
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UPDATE 3-F-35 fighter jet to make first trans-Atlantic flight in July 16 Apr 2014 Andrea Shalal
"...Current plans call for several F-35s to participate in the air shows, including at least one of the three F-35 B-model jets already built for Britain, with a UK pilot at the controls.
U.S. and UK officials agreed on the need to bring over a number of aircraft to avoid any technical flight disruptions....
...U.S. defense officials said the overseas flights would be used for additional training and would help the F-35 program office learn how the plane's logistics, maintenance, aerial refueling, and security systems work overseas...."
http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/...0N80Y220140416
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F-35B set to make international debut at RIAT, Farnborough 16 Apr 2014 Flight Global
"...The appearance also represents a logistical challenge for the F-35 flight test team. More than seven years and 15,200 flight hours after first flight in December 2006, the F-35 still has not crossed an ocean.
But the programme has been preparing for the extended trip across the Atlantic. On 25 February, a joint sortie by AF-6 and BF-18 – F-35A and B models, respectively – completed a 5.7h mission.
The nature of the F-35 flying display in the UK has not been announced, but the test team appears to be prepared despite the aircraft remaining at least. In March, an F-35B performed a full aerial display at the MCAS Yuma, Arizona, Air Show, featuring several high-speed passes in normal mode and low-speed passes in STOVL configuration.
In the final pass, the F-35B slowed to a hover about 100m over the runway, pivoted about 45 degrees, and then accelerated to make a final turn and land in normal mode."
http://www.flightglobal.com/news/art...orough-398334/