The US is deploying a squadron of F-35 fighter jets to Japan.

The U.S. Marine Corps announced on January 10 that it had deployed a squadron of F-35B fighter jets to Japan, marking the first operational deployment overseas of America's most advanced combat aircraft.

F-35B fighter jet. (Source: Daily Mail)

The deployment of the F-35B squadron to the U.S. Marine Corps' Iwakuni Air Base on Honshu Island marks a significant milestone for this controversial fighter jet, which has been plagued by technical problems and soaring costs.

With a total cost of $379 billion for 2,443 aircraft, Lockheed Martin's F-35 is the most expensive fighter jet in history, and the cost is expected to increase further.

The F-35B variant for the Marine Corps is capable of short runway takeoffs and vertical landings.

In December 2016, US President-elect Donald Trump shocked the aviation industry when he announced on Twitter that he had asked Boeing to calculate the cost of producing a replacement fighter jet for the F-35 due to its exorbitant production costs.

According to Vietnam+