Overview

• On Aug. 27, a CH-53K from HMH-461 sling-loaded the F-35B airframe BF-01 from NAS Patuxent River, Maryland, to MCAS Beaufort, South Carolina, for a permanent static display.
• The aircraft was stripped of its mission and propulsion systems along with its outer wings and other equipment, resulting in an external load of about 22,000 pounds.
• Program officials said the helicopter completed the long-range lift with ample power margin and range, underscoring the platform’s heavy-lift performance.
• HMH-461 rehearsed the operation in advance and sustained the mission using Air-Delivered Ground Refueling provided by a second CH-53K.
• BF-01 is the first-built F-35B that accomplished the type’s first vertical landing in 2010 and first vertical takeoff in 2013 during its test career before retirement in 2022.