The F-35 Lightning II just faced its ultimate trial by fire. From February 28 to April 8, 2026, Operation Epic Fury saw the most intensive employment of fifth-generation airpower in history, and the results are finally in.
In this deep dive, we’re breaking down the technical and tactical performance of the Lightning II—from the harrowing combat damage of an F-35A on March 19th to the high-stakes “Radar Crisis” that has some of our newest jets flying with blocks of concrete in the nose. In this video, we explore:
The March 19th Incident: The full story of the first F-35 to ever take combat damage from a SAM and how it survived to make an emergency landing.
The Radar Crisis: Why Lot 17 aircraft are being delivered with ballast instead of the next-gen AN/APG-85 radar, and the engineering “bulkhead” bottleneck that started it all. The Electronic Brain: A look at the “predominantly unusable” TR-3 software and why most of the war was actually won using the older, stable TR-2 configuration.
Operation Epic Fury Case Studies:
How the F-35 acted as the “quarterback” for the “Dude 44” rescue mission and the first-ever land-based deployment of the F-35C “Tomcats.”
Sustainment Under Fire: The hidden war maintainers fought against canopy delamination and engine heat stress in the Middle Eastern desert. Whether you’re a “Lightning” fan or a skeptic, the data from Epic Fury has changed the conversation forever. The aircraft was the hero, but the industrial challenges are the new frontline.