Weeks after they arrived in Puerto Rico, the F-35s have been proven flying with reside AIM-120Ds, AIM-9Xs and GBU-54s.
The U.S. is now displaying in official photographs the U.S. Marine Corps’ F-35Bs working within the Caribbean, weeks after they have been initially deployed to Puerto Rico. The primary photographs have been launched on the DVIDS community on Oct. 2, 2025, though they have been captured on Sept. 13 – the day the F-35s arrived on the former Roosevelt Roads Naval Station in Ceiba, Puerto Rico.
Armed F-35s
Notably, on Oct. 3, the U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) launched a video displaying the F-35Bs being armed and launched with reside weapons. Whereas just one is proven in the course of the loading operations, a number of plane might be seen already armed within the background.
Lethality and warfighting:#Marines load ordnance on @USMC F-35B Lightning II fighters throughout coaching within the Caribbean. U.S. forces are deployed to the Caribbean in help of the #SOUTHCOM mission, @DeptofWar-directed operations, and @POTUS’ priorities. @SecWar @MARFORSOUTH pic.twitter.com/SBmFtmVcK4
— U.S. Southern Command (@Southcom) October 3, 2025
The plane are carrying a mixture of two AIM-9X Sidewinder IR-guided air-to-air missiles – carried externally, an AIM-120C-6 and an AIM-120D AMRAAM radar-guided air-to-air missiles, and two GBU-54 Laser JDAM 500 lb guided bombs. The mixture of weapons is fascinating as U.S. President Donald Trump stated he’s contemplating hanging targets in Venezuela, after figuring out the US is engaged in “a non-international armed battle” with drug cartels.
Using Laser JDAMs would give the F-35s the flexibleness to have interaction each shifting targets, just like the vessels being struck at sea, in addition to fastened land targets. Additionally, the mixture of AMRAAMs and Sidewinders would permit the F-35s to counter the fighter jets of the Venezuelan Air Power (Aviación Militar Bolivariana Venezolana), the F-16s and Su-30s – the previous solely armed with AIM-9s and the latter additionally armed with the R-77 (AA-12 Adder) radar-guided AAM.
Earlier this morning, on President Trump’s orders, I directed a deadly, kinetic strike on a narco-trafficking vessel affiliated with Designated Terrorist Organizations within the USSOUTHCOM space of duty. 4 male narco-terrorists aboard the vessel have been killed within the… pic.twitter.com/QpNPljFcGn
— Secretary of Warfare Pete Hegseth (@SecWar) October 3, 2025
Moreover, not all plane are geared up with the same old RCS (Radar Cross Part) enhancers/radar reflectors usually put in throughout peacetime and coaching operations. The plane are flying this manner with their lowest radar signature, and this is able to permit them to take full benefit of their low-observable capabilities within the occasion of land strikes.
A number of S-125 “Pechora-2M” Floor-to-Air Missile Programs with the Venezuelan Military have been noticed on the Central Regional Freeway yesterday close to Maracay in Northern Venezuela. pic.twitter.com/dbXbNjWBxP
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) October 3, 2025
F-35s in Puerto Rico
The primary flight of F-35B Lightning II stealth fighters arrived in Puerto Rico on Sept. 13, 2025, per week after it was initially introduced. The fifth era fighters joined the broader and visibly expanded U.S. navy posture within the Caribbean that U.S. officers tie to counter-drug operations.
Images and open-source monitoring first confirmed F-35s touchdown on the former Roosevelt Roads naval advanced in Ceiba, Puerto Rico. A Reuters photographer captured photographs of 5 F-35s touching down there on Sept. 13, whereas open-source monitoring confirmed further jets arriving from Marine Corps Air Station Yuma through MacDill Air Power Base.
Notably, the images of the F-35s touchdown at Ceiba confirmed the jets with out seen unit tail and fuselage markings. The absence of clear identifiers has raised questions amongst observers, though it’s being thought of as a deliberate measure to reinforce operational safety and cut back attribution of the deployed jets to the items concerned.
The captions of the pictures now launched determine the unit concerned within the deployment because the Marine Fighter Connect Squadron 225 (VMFA-225), also referred to as the “Vikings.” The unit is certainly based mostly at MCAS Yuma, Arizona.
The plane are proven parked within the open at Ceiba’s airport, surrounded by help tools. Notably, a number of lightning rods might be seen on the flight line, a recurring characteristic seen for years when the fighters are deployed to comprise questions of safety as a result of lightning strikes.
It seems that the U.S. is perhaps gearing for an growth of the operations there, as different pictures captured on Sept. 29 present ongoing restore and resurfacing works at Ceiba. The captions particularly point out “milling and overlaying a brand new runway” on the location.
What the F-35s Deliver
Observers and analysts emphasize that the F-35’s worth within the area extends past air-to-air fight. As we beforehand famous right here at The Aviationist, the fifth-generation platform combines superior strike functionality with extraordinarily succesful sensors and data-fusion methods that make it a robust nontraditional Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) asset.
The plane’s AESA radar and electro-optical suites can accumulate and fuse data that’s distributed throughout command networks, enhancing maritime and overland situational consciousness in advanced environments. This multiplies the effectiveness of any drive bundle it helps, making the plane not solely a deterrent via presence but additionally a drive enabler that enhances situational consciousness and operational decision-making in contested environments.
Significance
The show of U.S. Marine Corps F-35Bs armed with reside ordnance in Puerto Rico comes at a time of heightened rhetoric between Washington and Caracas. Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has repeatedly accused the US of getting ready for navy intervention, whereas U.S. officers have criticized Venezuela’s continued position as a hub for narcotics trafficking.
Venezuela additionally accused the U.S. of flying the F-35s 75 km off its coast, in what has been described as a “provocation.” However, the U.S. says can also be conducting workouts within the space, together with naval reside hearth.
Demonstrating readiness and lethality: @USNavy and @USMC forces performed coaching, together with a live-fire train with naval weapons methods, within the Caribbean Sea. U.S. navy forces are deployed to the Caribbean in help of the #SOUTHCOM mission, @DeptofWar-directed… pic.twitter.com/33wANxUOOk
— U.S. Southern Command (@Southcom) October 2, 2025
Trump’s current remarks about contemplating strikes on drug cartel infrastructure in Venezuela have added a task to those deployments. Though U.S. Southern Command frames its actions as a part of enhanced counter-narcotics operations, the positioning of fifth era fighters inside speedy hanging vary of Venezuelan airspace has sturdy deterrent overtones.
The discharge of images displaying the jets armed with AIM-120 and AIM-9X missiles, alongside precision-guided GBU-54 Laser JDAMs, underscores Washington’s potential to each problem Venezuelan Air Power fighters and ship pinpoint strikes on maritime or land-based targets. This is able to present the readiness to counter any menace after Venezuela proven its Su-30s flying within the space with Kh-31A (AS-17 Krypton) supersonic anti-ship missiles.
La AMB muestra sus cartas en su propaganda, en éste caso un Sukhoi Su-30 artillado con misil Kh-31. Al mando de uno de los Sukhoi va Cindi Caraballo, alias Katara. Parte del video information de al menos Mayo de 2024. pic.twitter.com/LTVcv0U74G
— 𝘼𝙧𝙧𝙚𝙘𝙝𝙤 (@Arr3ch0) September 15, 2025
Moreover, the deployment of F-35Bs to Puerto Rico gives a transparent instance of how the U.S. navy is making use of its Agile Fight Employment (ACE) doctrine in observe. ACE emphasizes flexibility, dispersion, and speedy mobility of superior platforms, enabling fight plane to function from a wider community of smaller or improvised bases reasonably than relying solely on massive, established airfields.
The F-35B, with its quick take-off and vertical touchdown (STOVL) functionality, is especially suited to this mannequin. By working from the previous Roosevelt Roads Naval Station in Ceiba, Puerto Rico, the USMC demonstrates that these jets might be forward-deployed to austere areas – outdoors of workouts – with restricted infrastructure whereas nonetheless sustaining high-end fight functionality.
This mannequin additionally aligns intently with how the Marine Corps envisions deploying its aviation property within the Pacific theater, the place dispersal and survivability are vital within the face of peer threats. Puerto Rico thus would serve not solely as a strategic Caribbean outpost for counter narcotic operations, but additionally as a proving floor for expeditionary sustainment of fifth era fighters.
