Washington, DC, December 4 - U.S. Air Force F-35A Lightning II stealth fighters have deployed to Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Alaska for intensive Arctic war training, marking one of the largest fifth-generation fighter rotations ever conducted in the strategically vital High North. The 356th Fighter Squadron from Eielson Air Force Base, joined by active-duty F-35s from the 355th Fighter Squadron and additional aircraft from Hill Air Force Base in Utah, is operating under extreme cold-weather conditions as part of Exercise Arctic Gold 25-1. This major Arctic deployment underscores the Pentagon’s renewed focus on great-power competition with Russia and China, both of whom maintain significant military capabilities above the Arctic Circle.
The frigid Alaskan environment, with temperatures regularly plunging below −30°F, serves as the perfect proving ground for the F-35’s advanced sensors, low-observable stealth coating, and complex avionics. Pilots and maintainers are testing cold-start procedures, weapons loading in heavy snow, and sustained combat operations while wearing bulky Arctic survival gear. The exercise also integrates fourth-generation F-16 aggressors and E-3 AWACS to simulate near-peer threats, replicating the electronic warfare and long-range missile environments U.S. forces could face in a potential Arctic or North Pacific conflict. Live AGM-158 JASSM cruise missile separations and internal weapons bay operations in sub-zero conditions are highlighting the F-35’s all-weather, day-or-night strike capability.
Beyond tactical training, the deployment is sending a clear deterrence message. Russia continues to modernize its Arctic bases and deploy S-400 air defense systems and hypersonic weapons along its northern coast, while China has declared itself a “near-Arctic” state and is expanding its polar icebreaker fleet. Stationing dozens of nuclear-capable, sensor-fused F-35s within striking distance of the Bering Strait demonstrates America’s commitment to defending NATO’s northern flank and preserving freedom of navigation through increasingly ice-free Arctic sea lanes.
As global warming accelerates the opening of new Arctic shipping routes and exposes vast untapped energy resources, military activity in the region is surging. The ongoing F-35 Arctic war training rotation in Alaska reinforces U.S. Air Force readiness for high-end combat in the planet’s harshest environment and signals to adversaries that America’s most advanced stealth fighter is fully prepared to dominate the skies of the High North.