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Marine Pilot Dave Berke First Commander to Fly F-35B

6/25/2026

24 3 Full Breakdown

Summary

Story summary

Dave Berke became the first operational commander to fly the Marine Corps F-35B.
He logged 3,000 hours on F/A-18, F-16, F-22 and F-35B and taught TOPGUN after deciding at age 13 to become a pilot from “Top Gun”.
He said the F-22’s thrust-vectoring and stealth give it “no real equal,” while the F-35’s strength is collection, fusion and sharing, shaping his view warfare will hinge on information dominance.

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Story summary

Dave Berke became the first operational commander to fly the Marine Corps F-35B.
He logged 3,000 hours on F/A-18, F-16, F-22 and F-35B and taught TOPGUN after deciding at age 13 to become a pilot from “Top Gun”.
He said the F-22’s thrust-vectoring and stealth give it “no real equal,” while the F-35’s strength is collection, fusion and sharing, shaping his view warfare will hinge on information dominance.