Title: F-35: What The Pilots Say  | Military Aviation   | Air & Space Magazine
Headings: F-35: What The Pilots Say
F-35: What The Pilots Say
Firsthand accounts of flying the world’s most advanced fighter.
Interviews by Linda Shiner
Billie Flynn | Experimental test pilot, Lockheed Martin
Lieutenant Colonel David “Chip” Berke | USMC (ret.)
Lieutenant JG Thorys Stensrud | U.S. Navy Strike Fighter Squadron 125
Colonel Arthur “Turbo” Tomassetti | USMC (ret.)
Major Valerie “Twitch” Wetzbarger | F-35 instructor pilot, USAF 56th Fighter Wing, Luke Air Force Base
Jon Beesley | Lockheed F-35 Chief Test Pilot, 2002–2011
Squadron Leader Andy Edgell | Royal Air Force, F-35 Patuxent River Integrated Test Force
Lieutenant Colonel Yosef Morris | USAF 4th Squadron Commander, 388th Fighter Wing, Hill Air Force Base
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Content: I don’t think it really hit me until after we landed—just how impressive the jet is and how big a step it is from a T-45 to the first gray, Navy jet. It definitely was a challenge to learn, and I don’t think anyone’s going to be crushing it right off the bat. The basic skills come pretty quickly, in two or three flights. The most challenging part is how much information the jet presents to you and focusing on the right things at the right time. Over time, you kind of find the best way to process the information. I can’t think of another experience I’ve had that’s quite like that. I’m sure some people brought some skills from video games that might have helped them out, but probably not too much. I played some video games growing up, and I don’t find comparability between playing video games and flying the F-35. My training class was the first to have the opportunity to go straight to the F-35. I hope that we can live up to the expectation and add to the corporate knowledge around the jet.