An F-35A Lightning II aircraft from Hill Air Force Base, Utah, takes off from the Nellis AFB, Nevada, runway Feb. 2. Airmen from the 388th and 419th Fighter Wings at Hill AFB are participating in Red Flag 2017. Red Flag is the U.S. Air Force’s premier air-to-air combat training exercise. This is the first F-35A deployment to Red Flag since the Air Force declared the jet combat ready in August 2016.