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A U.S. Marine stands in front of the new F-35 flight simulator on Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, Calif., Jan. 21.

Photo by Lance Cpl. Levi Voss

F-35 simulator building unveiled during Winter Fury

26 Jan 2021 | 1st Lt. Charles Allen The Official United States Marine Corps Public Website

3rd Marine Aircraft Wing dedicates its inaugural F-35 simulator building aboard Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, January 21. This marks the next step in streamlining the training process of the fifth-generation joint strike fighter, which has been recognized as one of the most advanced aircraft in military history.

In addition to providing a much more efficient means of producing highly trained pilots to operate the fifth-generation stealth fighter, this simulator will allow 3rd MAW aviators to train, rehearse, and refine their integrated abilities alongside the Navy and other Marine Corps allies operating across the globe.

“This building coming together will train pilots to bring violence to the people that desperately need it,” said Maj. Gen. Christopher Mahoney, 3rd MAW Commanding General. “That’s what this represents, another step that forces our competitors and adversaries, whether they’re Chinese or anybody else, to think twice.”

Flight simulators are an essential tool and an integral part of Marine aviation training that allow 3rd MAW squadrons to hone critical skills in simulated environments that refine their ability to conduct operations with a variety of aviation platforms in multiple environments from a centralized location.

 “The building is a manifested result of the teamwork and dedication of Marines that everyone talks about.” Maj. Gen. Christopher Mahoney, 3rd MAW Commanding General

“Distributed mission training will have the ability to integrate with other Navy and Marine Corps assets that are off site,” said Jennifer Moore, Training and Operations Manager for Lockheed Martin. “So we’ve got the F-35 simulators here on site that we’re going to be able to link with air wing operations that Navy counterparts that they’re going to be flying with in combat, as well as integrates other Marine Corps units as well, and able to have everybody join on the same simulated environment. The Air Force has their own distributed mission training network and the next step would be to get connected and let all the services play in the same domain.”

“The building is a manifested result of the teamwork and dedication of Marines that everyone talks about,” said Mahoney. “To the team here that allows us to take another step against our adversaries, my hat’s off to you.”

3rd MAW continues to “Fix, Fly and Fight” as the Marine Corps’ largest aircraft wing, and remains combat-ready, deployable on short notice, and lethal when called into action.

For questions regarding this release, please contact the 3rd MAW Communication Strategy and Operations Office at 3rdmawmedia@usmc.mil.