Home Travel A USMC F-35B flies for the first time on a Finnish highway...

A USMC F-35B flies for the first time on a Finnish highway during the Ramstein flag.

U.S. Marine Corps F-35B Lightning IIs from VMFA-224 perform landing and takeoff operations on a highway strip in Finland during exercise Ramstein Flag 2026.

The U.S. Marine Corps’ F-35B Lightning II fighter jets conducted highway operations in Finland for the first time during exercise Ramstein Flag 2026. The operation took place from 8 to 12 June 2026 on the highway strip in Tervo.

The F-35Bs of Marine Fighter Attack Squadron-224 (VMFA-224) “Fighting Bengals” were not the only aircraft initially involved in the Finnish Highway operation. In fact, the U.S. Marine Corps announced that the F-35 has been joined by the Spanish EF-18 (formerly designated F/A-18C/D Hornet by the Spanish Air Force Space Force), the F-16 Fighting Falcon, and the Polish Air Force (PolAF) M-346 trainer aircraft.

The Finnish component of RAFL26 was supervised by the Lappland, Karrelia and Satakunta Air Wings of Illmavoimat, which operated Pirkkala and Rovaniemi air bases. Finland also hosted the first highway operations of the Italian F-35B during Exercise Imminent Field 26, which took place May 18-22.

Highway operations were supported by Marine Wing Support Squadron 272 (MWSS 272), 2nd Marine Air Wing (2MAW), which provided forward armament and refueling. In videos released by all parties involved in the exercise, at least two each of the EF-18, F-16 and F-35B can be seen.

The 2nd MAW Liaison also supported the Combined Air Operations Center (CAOC), established last year in Bodø, Norway, which coordinated the massive 19-nation Ramstein Flag exercise involving more than 200 aircraft. For training in Finland, Ilmavoimat deployed 12 F/A-18 C/D Hornets, while foreign aircraft participation was 50 aircraft.

Marines F35B Finland Highway 2
Two U.S. Marine Corps F-35B Lightning II aircraft from VMFA 224, MAG 13, receive 2nd MAW refueling in Terbo, Finland, June 9, 2026. (Image credit: U.S. Marine Corps photo by Corporal Mya Seymour)

American F-35 in Finland

Prior to highway landing training, Marine Corps F-35Bs first flew alongside Finnish F/A-18C/D Hornets from their original base, the larger Rovaniemi base. In Rovaniemi, a Marine Corps F-35B stopped at Risala Air Base in the Karelia Air Force for hot pit refueling, Ilmavoimat reported in X.

A U.S. press release quoted U.S. Air Force Lt. Gen. Jason T. Hinds, commander of Allied Air Command, as saying the latest version of the Ramstein flag, from northernmost Norway to southern Spain, demonstrated the coalition’s 360-degree approach to defending NATO.

“This operation provided NATO allies with a unique opportunity to exercise the Agile Combat Employment concept, a strategic capability that enables NATO to project combat power from distributed and non-traditional locations. During a conflict, this concept allows Allied air forces to extend their aircraft range beyond traditional airfields and infrastructure.”

Finland’s Ramstein flag and Finnish F-35

Ilmavoimat said that during the first week of training, the Karelian Air Force captured the Tervo alternative landing site in the northern city of Savo. While it is building an F-35-focused maintenance and support infrastructure at Rovaniemi and Karelia Air Bases under the Lapland Air Force and Karelia Air Wing, respectively, the U.S. Air Force acknowledged that “material and aircraft stand storage capacity at the bases is limited,” adding that “although this has partially posed operational challenges, it has not prevented its acceptance by allies.”

Ilmavoimat is also taking advantage of the opportunity to become familiar with F-35 operations after the first of 64 airframes is delivered to the U.S.-based training unit at Ebbing, Arkansas ANGB in October 2025. One goal was to achieve interoperability between the various fighters of the fourth and fifth generation aircraft, which “will play a critical role in the coming years.”

Two VMFA-224 F-35B Lightning IIs prepare for takeoff from Tervo, Finland, during exercise Ramstein Flag 2026, June 10, 2026. (Image credit: U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Mya Seymour)

This will especially benefit the transition phase from the legacy F/A-18 to the F-35A. Ilmavoimat said the F-35 is expected to arrive in Finland by the fall of 2026, after which both types will operate simultaneously for a period of time. At the same time, the Allies became familiar with “the use of alternative landing sites as part of the Finnish Air Force’s mobile and distributed combat strategy.”

Other operations and aircraft

The overall operation in Finland, Sweden and Norway saw a smaller “shadow circuit” flown in the morning and a larger “main circuit” flown in the afternoon, all coordinated by COAC Bodø. “Normally, airspace is permitted for a total of more than 100 aircraft to participate in the circuit,” the press release said.

Imavoimat Col. Mäntylä named its set of missions: Suppression/Destruction of Enemy Air Defenses (SEAD/DEAD), airborne radar surveillance, airborne refueling and electronic warfare running on main circuits.

At least two of the US Air Force F-35As from RAF Lakenheath, England, Britain’s own F-35Bs from the aircraft carrier HMS Prince of Wales, and the NATO Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Force (NISRF) RQ-4D Phoenix HALE class surveillance drones trained at Pirrkala AB under the Satakunta Air Wing.

Lapland Air Wing also housed Luftwaffe Tornado attack aircraft and Eurofighters. The refueling fleet, based in Rovaniemi, Lapland AW’s main base of operations, consists of A330 Multi-Role Tanker Transport (MRTT) aircraft from the NATO multinational MRTT force and US Marine Corps KC-130J Super Hercules.

RELATED ARTICLES

© 2026 liveindex.live
Exit mobile version