The F-35’s New Nickname Is “Panther”

The patch also features an F-35 and the unit's historic skull mascot. The yellow checkers match the Weapons School's iconic silk flying scarves.

The Warzone/The Drive: The Air Force's Elite Weapons School Has Given The F-35 A New Nickname

It's more common than not for U.S. military aircraft get unofficial nicknames that stick and that seems to have already occurred for the F-35.

It's Viper for the F-16, Warthog for the A-10, Moose for the C-17, Rhino for the F-4, and the list goes on. The USAF, along with the other services, have long histories of giving their combat aircraft new names, oftentimes of the animal kingdom variety, after the planes had already received their official monikers. This was near certain to be the case for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter once it was assigned the less than thrilling official name of Lightning II. Now it's become clear that a new name has caught on for the stealth jet among the top echelons the USAF's F-35 cadre, and that nickname is 'Panther.'

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Update: The F-35’s New, Much Better Nickname is “Panther” (Popular Mechanics)

WNU Editor: It is a better nickname than F-35 Lightning.