Filmed by our friend Dafydd Phillips, the super cool video in this post shows 495th Fighter Squadron F-35A Lightning II strike fighters from RAF Lakenheath hitting a snowy Mach Loop.
Filmed on Mar. 15, 2023 by our friend Dafydd Phillips, the super cool video in this post shows 495th Fighter Squadron F-35A Lightning II strike fighters from RAF Lakenheath hitting a snowy Mach Loop.
‘Some days all the ingredients are there but it just doesn’t happen. On this day it happened!!! Snowy backdrop, sufficient light and great jets flown by great pilots from the 495th Valkyries, Lakenheath,’ Phillips says.
As already explained, the 495th Fighter Squadron was nicknamed the “Valkyries” during a voting contest in 2020 and the new F-35 squadron consists of 24 aircraft.
RAF Lakenheath was selected in 2015 to host the first US F-35A squadrons in Europe based on very close ties with the RAF, existing infrastructure, and combined training opportunities. The UK is a critical component in training and combat readiness for Air Forces in Europe due to its excellent airspace and F-35 program partnership.
RAF Lakenheath received its first delivery of F-35A Lightning II aircraft on Dec. 15, 2021.
The Mach Loop (also known as the Machynlleth Loop) consists of a series of valleys in the UK in west-central Wales, which are famous for their use as low-level training areas for fast jet aircraft. The system of valleys lies 8 miles east of Barmouth and is nestled between the towns of Dolgellau to the north and Machynlleth to the south, from the latter of which it takes its name.
The training area is within LFA7, which covers most of Wales. Aircraft which use (and which have used in recent years) this training area include Royal Air Force (RAF) Typhoon, Hawk jets and Airbus A400M and C-130J cargo aircraft as well as USAF F-15C Eagles, F-15E Strike Eagles, F-22 Raptors, and F-35A Lightning IIs.
Photo credit: Dafydd Phillips
