2014 War Against the Islamic State

F-35A Lightning II in the 2014 War Against the Islamic State

U.S. Air Force F-35As made the variant's first combat employment on April 30, 2019, striking a Daesh tunnel network and weapons cache at Wadi Ashai, Iraq, during Operation Inherent Resolve.

Weapon profileF-35A Lightning II
SideAnti-ISIS coalition and partner forcesRoleLong-Range StrikeInterdiction
F-35A Lightning II, Conventional takeoff and landing stealth multirole fighter, Aircraft & UAVs - 2014 War Against the Islamic State
Image source: F-35A flight (cropped).jpg

Evidence Map

ClaimSources
Two U.S. Air Force F-35As conducted an April 30, 2019 airstrike at Wadi Ashai, Iraq, in support of Combined Joint Task Force - Operation Inherent Resolve.

Sources: AFCENT F-35A First Combat Employment

The strike was described by AFCENT as the F-35A's first combat employment.

Sources: AFCENT F-35A First Combat Employment

The target was an entrenched Daesh tunnel network and weapons cache in the Hamrin Mountains, struck with a Joint Direct Attack Munition.

Sources: AFCENT F-35A First Combat Employment, AFCENT April 2019 Airpower Summary

The strike occurred within April 2019 coalition air operations supporting ISIS clearance operations in Iraq and Syria.

Sources: AFCENT April 2019 Airpower Summary

Timeline

F-35A Lightning II In 2014 War Against the Islamic State

  1. F-35As arrive in the CENTCOM area of operations

    AFCENT said F-35As deployed from Hill Air Force Base, Utah, joined the Combined Forces Air Component team in the U.S. Central Command area of operations on April 15.

    Sources: AFCENT F-35A First Combat Employment

  2. First F-35A combat employment in Iraq

    Two U.S. Air Force F-35As struck a Daesh tunnel network and weapons cache at Wadi Ashai, Iraq, in support of Combined Joint Task Force - Operation Inherent Resolve.

    Sources: AFCENT F-35A First Combat Employment

  3. AFCENT summarizes April airpower activity

    AFCENT's April 2019 airpower summary repeated the F-35A Wadi Ashai strike and reported broader April strike, ISR, tanker, airlift, and airdrop activity in support of ISIS clearance operations in Iraq and Syria.

    Sources: AFCENT April 2019 Airpower Summary

Documented Use

Direct proof of use

The F-35A Lightning II is directly documented in the 2014 War Against the Islamic State through U.S. Air Forces Central Command reporting on Operation Inherent Resolve. On April 30, 2019, two U.S. Air Force F-35As conducted an airstrike at Wadi Ashai, Iraq, in support of Combined Joint Task Force - Operation Inherent Resolve.

AFCENT described the mission as the F-35A's first combat employment. The aircraft used a Joint Direct Attack Munition against an entrenched Daesh tunnel network and weapons cache in the Hamrin Mountains, a target area the release said could threaten friendly forces.

Sources: AFCENT F-35A First Combat Employment

Timeline

The F-35A deployment reached the U.S. Central Command area of operations on April 15, 2019, when aircraft from Hill Air Force Base joined the Combined Forces Air Component team. The first documented strike followed on April 30 at Wadi Ashai, Iraq.

AFCENT's April 2019 airpower summary later repeated the Wadi Ashai strike and placed it within the Iraq-Syria air campaign for that month, when U.S. and coalition pilots flew strike and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance sorties in support of coalition and partner ground forces' ISIS clearance operations.

Sources: AFCENT F-35A First Combat Employment, AFCENT April 2019 Airpower Summary

Operational role

The documented F-35A role in this conflict was precision air interdiction and strike against an ISIS tunnel-and-cache target. The public official releases identify the aircraft, operator context, operation, location, target category, and munition family, but they do not provide aircraft tail numbers, exact aimpoints, or a longer sortie history for the type in Operation Inherent Resolve.

The F-35A record therefore rests on a specific confirmed combat mission rather than a broad claim about continuous use. In the catalog's conflict-role model, the Wadi Ashai strike supports long-range strike and interdiction because the aircraft attacked a weapons cache and tunnel network in support of coalition and partner operations against ISIS.

Sources: AFCENT F-35A First Combat Employment, AFCENT April 2019 Airpower Summary

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Sources