The F35 CAN VTOL, it is not meant to be used that way since it extremely limits fuel and armaments. The carrier variant is meant to be STOL, since its a JOINT

The F35 CAN VTOL, it is not meant to be used that way since it extremely limits fuel and armaments. The carrier variant is meant to be STOL, since its a JOINT Strike Fighter meant for multi-country use, and many countries do not have large carriers with catapults. Namely Great Britain, whose largest carriers are not equipped with catapults, since they are designed to use STOL planes.