Arconic displays cutting edge fighter jet today

NILES

Inside a plant on Warren Avenue sits an F-35 Lightning II flight simulator ready to show the world its capabilities.

Lockheed Martin, producer of the fighter jet, brought the simulator to the Arconic plant in Niles to show what the plant helps to produce. All of the titanium on the jet comes out of the local plant that employs 650.

“The team here in Niles casts titanium for the most capable aircraft in the world,” said Jeremy Halford, president for Arconic Titanium and Engineered Products.

U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan of Howland, D-13th, was the first to test out the F-35 simulator, and he landed it without crashing.

“The technology in it is incredible,” Ryan said after his simulation.

The F-35 is a fifth-generation fighter that combines “advanced stealth with fighter speed and agility, fully fused sensor information, network-enabled operations and advanced sustainment,” according to the F-35 website.

J.R. McDonald, vice president of Air Force programs, Lockheed Martin government affairs, described the F-35 as a “Star Wars” jet, which makes it an unfair fight for the enemy.

“You will see that survivability and lethality as you go up against current and future threats,” he said.

Read more about the jet in Wednesday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.