The United Kingdom accepted the first F-35 Lightning II for an international operator in ceremonies on 19 July 2012 at the Lockheed Martin facility in Fort Worth, Texas. The UK Secretary of State for Defence, The Right Honourable Philip Hammond (shown here) and US Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics Frank Kendall represented the two governments. The United Kingdom, the first of eight international partners to join the F-35 program, plans to acquire the F-35B short takeoff and vertical landing aircraft for both the Royal Air Force and Royal Navy. Shortly after the ceremony, the first F-35B for the United Kingdom, called BK-1, was flown on a local area flight with RAF Sqdn. Ldr. Jim Schofield at the controls.
