The USMC F-35B Lightning II roars over the 2024 Charleston Air Show/Heroes of Flight. Shot on Saturday, April 20.
The F-35B is a regular performer at MCAS air shows, and it has been since 2013. This year, the USMC F-35B demo teams have been branching out and will perform at 15 air shows across the country. VMFAT-501, based at MCAS Beaufort, SC, has been doing full demonstrations since 2019, and the west coast demo team from MCAS Miramar followed suit in 2023.
This is my first air show shooting with my new camera. I unfortunately shot interlaced frames by mistake, so the video appears choppy. I will change this setting for my next air show in May. Due to the unique setup at Charleston, neither of its two runways line up with the crowd line. As a result, the performers would take off and adjust in the air to line up with the crowd. The F-35B took off from Runway 15 at Charleston, then banked right to line up with the crowd. This gives us a pretty detailed look into the top of the lift fan, one of the mechanisms that allows it to hover in the air. This is a rare angle from which to view this aircraft.
Enjoy!
Maneuvers:
Startup (0:00)
Short takeoff (0:57)
MRT and Low Speed Loop (1:25)
Dedication Pass (2:14)
High Speed Climb and Split S (2:35)
Square Loop (3:17)
High Alpha Pass (4:05)
Tactical Pitch (4:54)
540 Pedal Turn (5:17)
STOVL Demo (5:57)