JFK and the Salty Dogs Bring in Navy’s 251st in Style
The future USS John F. Kennedy (CVN 79) marked a milestone on October 13 (the Navy’s official birthday) by recovering her first aircraft, an F-35C Lightning II assigned to the “Salty Dogs” of Air Test and Evaluation Squadron (VX) 23.
A U.S. Navy F-35C Lightning II, attached to the “Salty Dogs” of Air Test and Evaluation Squadron (VX) 23, makes an arrested landing on the flight deck aboard PCU John F. Kennedy (CVN 79), marking the first time an F-35C lands on a Ford-class aircraft carrier. John F. Kennedy is underway conducting Aircraft Compatibility Testing, which assesses the ship’s aircraft launch and recovery equipment with U.S. Navy aircraft. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Ka
It was the first F-35C recovery aboard a Ford-class carrier.
That is important, as just four of the Navy’s 11 carriers, all Nimitz-class, can operate the F-35C: Carl Vinson, Theodore Roosevelt, Abraham Lincoln, and George Washington
Two F-35 test pilots from Air Test and Evaluation Squadron Two Three (VX-23), Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division (NAWCAD), fly F-35C Lightning II fighter aircraft to the PCU John F. Kennedy (CVN 79) in the Western Atlantic Oct. 13, 2026.
An F-35 test pilot from Air Test and Evaluation Squadron Two Three (VX-23), Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division (NAWCAD), flies an F-35C Lightning II fighter aircraft to the PCU John F. Kennedy (CVN 79) in the Western Atlantic on Oct. 13, 2026.
A U.S. Navy F-35C Lightning II, attached to the “Salty Dogs” of Air Test and Evaluation Squadron (VX) 23, makes an arrested landing on the flight deck aboard PCU John F. Kennedy (CVN 79), marking the first time an F-35C lands on a Ford-class aircraft carrier.
Now roughly 99 percent complete following sea trials in August, Kennedy received preliminary Navy acceptance on 29 September 29 and moved to Norfolk Naval Station to begin crew training and system testing.
Shipbuilders are finalizing certification for the carrier’s last four Advanced Weapons Elevators (AWEs) and Advanced Arresting Gear (AAG) ahead of an adjusted formal delivery date and commissioning in March 2027.