F-35 Joint Strike Fighter (JSF)

[MarkOttawa]

Another aspect of the plane:

Coming in 2020: A new technology to link F-35 simulators across the globe

Next year, U.S. Air Force F-35 pilots will be able to hop into a simulator and practice large-scale coordinated attacks with other F-35A users in simulators around the globe, Lockheed Martin’s head of F-35 training said Tuesday.

The capability, called Distributed Mission Training, will allow an unlimited number of F-35 simulators to be networked, enabling high-end training, said Chauncey McIntosh, Lockheed’s vice president for F-35 training and logistics.

“We’ve been testing to ensure that it’s ready to go with our first customer at Nellis Air Force Base [in Nevada]. We’ve got hardware that’s going up there this month and we’re starting our test connections, and everything is looking very well [regarding] this product,” he said during a briefing at the Interservice/Industry, Training, Simulation and Education Conference.

“Essentially we’re waiting just to get the accreditation from the government. We’ll connect that [hardware] and then we’ll start running tests on site with software. And then we’ll go to our final delivery in spring of 2020," he told Defense News.

Currently, F-35 bases can only link as many simulators as they have on site — usually as many as four. However, the Distributed Mission Training capability, or DMT, will allow every U.S. Air Force base to connect up to four of its F-35 simulators with those of every other air base, McIntosh said.

At some point, F-35A simulators may also be able to regularly connect with any other aircraft simulator that can be supported on the same network...
https://www.defensenews.com/digital-show-dailies/itsec/2019/12/04/coming-in-2020-a-new-technology-that-will-link-f-35-simulators-across-the-globe/

Mark
Ottawa

 

[MarkOttawa]

Note also Turkey, F-15EX, B-21, KC-46:

Congress Gives Air Force 12 Extra F-35s; OKs Almost $1B For NGAD
Worried about readiness, Congress demands that DoD acquisition czar Ellen Lord undertake a sweeping study of "sustainment cost data related to the F–35 program."

The Air Force got authorization in the new NDAA for an extra $1 billion for 12 additional F-35As [emphasis added], but the new funds come with a raft of oversight measures and new reporting requirements.

A summary of the bill’s language put out by House Republicans states that the new planes are “to address an identified Air Force unfunded requirement and accelerate delivery of needed 5th generation capability and $440 million for the purchase of additional F-35s originally ordered by Turkey [emphasis added].”

Altogether, DoD asked for 78 F-35 Joint Strike Fighters in its budget request; the conference bill pumps that up to 90 [emphasis added. The Senate version of the NDAA would have authorized 94; the Senate Appropriations Committee’s bill would have pumped the number to a whopping 96. The House NDAA bill authorized 90 — echoing House appropriators.

The NDAA agreement further provides “the necessary authority for buying F-35 long lead spare parts in bulk to help achieve better cost savings for the F-35 and authorizes buy-to-budget authority to capitalize on lower unit cost savings,” the summary states.

Congress also gave a thumbs up to 10 F-35Bs and 20 F-35Cs requested by the Navy and Marine Corps [emphasis added--so USAF getting 60 planes].

However, the lawmakers’ generosity comes with its own price tag. The bill requires a number of reports on the overarching F-35 program with an eye to increasing congressional oversight.

In particular, the DoD Comptroller must submit along with DoD’s fiscal 2021 budget request a report that provides:

    An assessment of “the progress of manufacturing processes improvement under the program;”
    A review of “the progress and results of the Block 4 Upgrade and Continuous Capability Development and Delivery Program and other follow-on modernization development and testing efforts.”
    An assessment of the DoD’s “schedule for delivering software upgrades in six month, scheduled increments.”
    A review of the “progress and results of any other significant hardware development and fielding efforts necessary for the F–35 Block 4 Upgrade  and Continuous Capability Development and Delivery Program.”

In addition, Congress orders the Air Force and Navy Secretaries to  jointly develop a joint service cost estimate for the life-cycle costs of the F–35 aircraft program and the Director of Cost Assessment and Program Evaluation to conduct another independent life-cycle cost estimate.

With an eye to the program’s long-standing troubles with readiness and sustainability, the NDAA conference report demands that DoD Acquisition czar Ellen Lord  provide Congress with a sweeping study of “sustainment cost data related to the F–35 program, including a comparison in itemized forma of the cost of legacy aircraft and the cost of the F–35 program, based on a standardized set of criteria.” no later than 180 days after the bill is passed. This provision was included in the House Armed Services Committee version of the bill.

The study must include a cost-reduction plan for operation, maintenance and sustainability of the aircraft; a review of F-35 “reliability and maintainability metrics” to ensure that they are in line with operational requirements and determine whether improvements can be made; and a review of the ALIS logistics system.

With regard to other major Air Force programs, Congress fully authorizes the service’s $3 billion funding request for the B-21 Raider; and its $1 billion request for eight F-15EX aircraft to begin replacing aging F-15C/D Eagle aircraft with a proviso demanding a comprehensive report on the program; and $2.3 billion for 12 KC-46 Pegasus tankers [emphasis added].

Appropriators on both sides of Capitol Hill also fully funded the F-15EX request in their 2020 budget bills. The two sides are still locked in tough negotiations, especially over the Trump Administration’s request to shift operations and maintenance funding to the southern border wall.

As the Air Force begins gearing up to build the aircraft to succeed the F-35, the NDAA authorizes $955 million for the Air Force Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) Program, cutting the $1 billion request by $45 million — a far smaller cut than the House Armed Services Committee version of the NDAA that would have chopped the program in half [emphasis added].

But not everything went the Air Force’s way. The bill prevents the Air Force from spending any funds to retire the RC-135 reconnaissance aircraft until DoD Secretary Mark Esper “certifies to the congressional defense committees that equivalent RC-135 capacity and capability exists to meet combatant commander requirements for indications and warning, intelligence preparation of the  operational environment, and direct support to kinetic and nonkinetic operations.”
https://breakingdefense.com/2019/12/congress-gives-air-force-12-extra-f-35s-oks-almost-1b-for-ngad/

Mark
Ottawa

 

[MarkOttawa]

Israelis getting readly to make some decisions:

Lockheed Presses For Sale Of 75 F-35s To Israel; Boeing Touts F-15s
A senior military source told Breaking Defense that both competitors are needed and the question is -- is who will get bought first: "The IAF needs 75 F-35s and the advanced version of the F-15, and the question is, who will be the first to be purchased."

TEL AVIV: The final push is on between Boeing and Lockheed Martin as Israel closes in on a final decision– which to buy first, more F-35s or an advanced version of the F-15 similar to the F-15X the US Air Force will buy.

A senior military source told Breaking Defense that both competitors are needed and the question is — is who will get bought first: “The IAF needs 75 F-35s and the advanced version of the F-15, and the question is, who will be the first to be purchased.”

Lockheed Martin sent Gary North, the company’s VP for customer requirements, the former head of Pacific Air Forces to press the company’s case. Aside from the expected claim that the F-35 is the best solution for the Israeli Air force’s challenges in the region, North said the unit price of LRIP Lot 14 will be $77.9 million, which means that the last six F-35s in the 50 aircraft contract will carry this price tag. They will be delivered in 2024. According to the best public estimate from the Pentagon, the F-15X will cost $90 million a copy, according to its Cost Assessment and Program (CAPE) analysts.

North said that the price of the F-35 flight hour is going down, and is, as Lockheed keeps promising and the government keeps doubting, going to to be $25,000 by 2025.

The Lockheed Martin senior official said that the radar of the F-35 is capable of detecting low flying threats like Iranian cruise missiles. North revealed that the F-35 test aircraft will be delivered to the IAF in the summer of 2020.

The IAF has prepared a list of weapon systems and “functional” systems that it intends to test on the special F-35 test aircraft.

The special test aircraft has been manufactured according to specifications that took two years to prepare.

The special aircraft is designed to adapt Israeli-developed systems to the IAF’s F-35s. “All our platforms have been upgraded to enable stretching the flight envelope while using the unique weapon systems made by the Israeli industries,” an IAF officer from its flight test center said.

Since the stealth fighter aircraft arrived, some Israeli-made systems have been tested in different scenarios, including during combat operations across the Middle East. But the test aircraft will allow these tests to be fully performed. We can’t offer many other details.

North said that the US and Israel are still negotiating how much the Israelis will be allowed to interface with the F-35’s core systems. While the US has claimed for years that partners and allies aircraft will have the same capabilities as those bought by the US, those negotiations make it clear there are limits. The test aircraft will help Israeli enhance the capabilities of the F-35 Adir in air-air and air-ground missions using highly classified Israeli systems developed for this purpose.

Israeli defense companies have been busy adapting operational systems for use on the F-35, including  electronic systems and special weapons systems. These initial designs have been updated based on Israel’s combat experience, with the aircraft striking targets across the Middle East.

In addition to the special capabilities Israel plans to install on their F-35s, the IAF wants to perform all heavy maintenance — depot-level — in Israel but North said the aircraft has been designed so that it does not need depot maintenance...
https://breakingdefense.com/2019/12/lockheed-presses-for-sale-of-75-f-35s-to-israel-boeing-touts-f-15s/

Mark
Ottawa

 

[MarkOttawa]

Production proceeding up as F-35A price goes down:

Lockheed Martin hits 2019 F-35 delivery target of 131 jets

Lockheed Martin Corp (LMT.N) said on Monday it has reached its 2019 target to deliver 131 F-35 fighter jets to the United States and its allies, as the defense contractor built 47% more jets this year.

The world’s largest defense contractor delivered a total of 134 of the stealthy jets this year and aims to deliver 141 F-35s in 2020.

The most common variation of the jet, the F-35A, now costs $77.9 million, beating its goal of lowering the price to below $80 million a year earlier than expected.

The F-35 program, which makes up about 25% of Lockheed’s annual revenue [emphasis added], has long aimed at expanding the fleet to more than 3,000 jets and bringing the unit price of the F-35A below $80 million through efficiencies gained by bulk orders.

Earlier this year, Pentagon announced pricing details for its agreement with Lockheed that lowers the cost of the F-35 jets it plans to purchase through 2022 by 12.7%, which may encourage other nations to buy the warplane.

In 2019, international deliveries jumped 43% to 30 jets for international partner nations [emphasis added].

More U.S. allies have been eyeing a purchase of the stealthy jet including Finland, Switzerland and the United Arab Emirates...
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-lockheed-f35/lockheed-martin-hits-2019-f-35-delivery-target-of-131-jets-idUSKBN1YY1D3

Mark
Ottawa

 

[MarkOttawa]

Is split buy with Super Hornet for nuke role still a possibility (USN SH-s have no nuclear capability)? What about risk to FCAS next-gen fighter program with France/Airbus if don't go all Typhoon?

Mark
Ottawa

Looks like Germany, under French pressure (FCAS), still won't go for F-35A to replace aging Tornados for NATO nuke role--maybe 40 Eurofighters and 40 EA-18G Growlers for nuke role:

In Germany, gridlock over nuclear-capable fighter jet

Germany's Air Force has a special mission: deliver American nukes in the case of a nuclear strike. But its Tornado fleet is rapidly nearing the end of its shelf life. So why has Germany yet to decide on a replacement? [read on]
https://www.dw.com/en/in-germany-gridlock-over-nuclear-capable-fighter-jet/a-51897327

Mark
Ottawa

 

[FJAG]

There're some old F104s in the USAF's boneyard being restored for the Yanks Air Museum in Chino, Calif. They can hurl nukes. Maybe if Germany ...

;D

 

[MarkOttawa]

ALIS is leaving Wonderland to be replaced by the mighty ODIN!

F-35 logistics system to be reinvented and renamed, official says

The computer-based logistics system of the F-35 stealth fighter jet made by Lockheed Martin (LMT.N), which has been plagued by delays, will be replaced by another network made by the same company, a Pentagon official said on Tuesday.

The Autonomic Logistics Information System (ALIS) was designed to underpin the F-35 fleet’s daily operations, ranging from mission planning and flight scheduling to repairs and scheduled maintenance, as well as the tracking and ordering of parts.

Ellen Lord, the Pentagon’s chief weapon’s buyer, said ALIS would be replaced with Lockheed Martin’s Operational Data Integrated Network (ODIN), which will be streamlined for efficiency “with the voice of the maintainer and the pilots at the forefront of the requirements list.”

Lord told Reuters outside a closed-door briefing to U.S. Congress that Lockheed Martin, the F-35’s prime contractor, would work on ODIN under the current ALIS funding profile without additional cost to the taxpayer.

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) had estimated that ALIS would have cost more than $16.7 billion over its multi-decade “life cycle”.

ALIS was blamed for delaying aircraft maintenance, one of the very things it was meant to facilitate.

“One Air Force unit estimated that it spent the equivalent of more than 45,000 hours per year performing additional tasks and manual workarounds because ALIS was not functioning as needed,” the GAO said in a November report.

By December 2022, ODIN will have replaced ALIS in all F-35s except those deployed remotely or on ships, Lord said [emphasis added, sure?].
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-pentagon-f35/f-35-logistics-system-to-be-reinvented-and-renamed-official-says-idUSKBN1ZE00D

Mark
Ottawa

 

[Retired AF Guy]

From Breaking Defense:

Poles, Eyes On Russia, Sign $4.6B F-35 Deal

The F-35As will replace Poland's existing Sukhoi Su-22 and Mikoyan MiG-29 Russian aircraft.

By  Colin Clark on January 31, 2020 at 3:36 PM

WASHINGTON: It’s no surprise, but Poland officially signed a Foreign Military Sales Agreement today to buy 32 F-35As, giving the long-time Russian foe the world’s most advanced fighters to counter its adversary.

“The United States welcomes the Polish government’s decision to purchase 32 F-35A Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter aircraft worth $4.6 billion under the Foreign Military Sales program,” Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in a statement. The original State Department approval allowed for a price as high as $6.5 billion.

Polish Defence Minister Mariusz Blaszczak signed the deal today. Polish President Andrzej Duda said it was an “exceptionally important day for Poland’s air force and for the security of Poland and of our part of Europe.” the Associated Press reports. Delivery is scheduled to being in 2024.

Low-rate initial production (LRIP) lot 13 F-35As are already priced below $80 million a copy (including engines) for the so-called flyaway cost. FMS deals, of course, include logistics, training and other support. The F-35As will replace existing Sukhoi Su-22 and Mikoyan MiG-29 Russian aircraft. Poland already flies 48 F-16s.

In addition, Poland signed a $4.8 billion deal with the U.S. for Patriot batteries in 2018.

AFP reports that the Polish “opposition has also denounced the right-wing Law and Justice (PiS) government for choosing the F-35 without a call for tenders and for agreeing to a deal without an industrial compensation program.” The absence of offsets — the term of art for such “industrial compensation” — may well have helped lower the final cost of the FMS agreement.

Link

 

[daftandbarmy]

Welcome to the US Belt and Road initiative:

F-35 Sales Are America’s Belt and Road

The United States uses the fighter jet program to further its own influence while leaving allies dependent.
Imagine a globe-spanning economic and security project—with a cost of over a trillion dollars and whose members encompass 46 percent of the global economy—designed to advance the interests and influence of the lead state, even as it binds the smaller ones into an asymmetric interdependence. Recipients get large economic rewards for participating, but they will find it even more expensive to extract themselves from the network in the long run.

Perhaps one day, China’s Belt and Road Initiative, which by the most generous definition of membership encompasses 40 percent of the world economy in its sprawling infrastructure initiatives, will live up to this description. But the United States’ Joint Strike Fighter program, peddling the F-35 fighter jet, already does, something the recent brinkmanship between Turkey and the United States makes clearer than ever.

https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/07/12/f-35-sales-are-americas-belt-and-road/

 

[MarkOttawa]

IDF to get get more of both F-35 and F-15 (want heavy weapons load of latter--its great missile load would be great for RCAF NORAD mission, only need stealth if Russian bombers are escorted--pity it's too late for F-15EX to get into our fighter game:

Israel Buys Stealth & Lotsa Weapons: 2nd Squadron Of F-35s & F-15s

After a long internal debate, Israel’s military has decided to buy both another Lockheed Martin F-35 squadron AND another Boeing F-15 squadron, in a deal estimated at $3 billion.

The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) general staff’s decision reflects the scope of missions the IAF will have to deal with in any major confrontation, especially one with Iran. Sources close to the issue say that, while the F-35’s stealth and advanced sensors are essential for some situations, in later phases of combat Israel will need other aircraft, ones with advanced avionics that can operate in conjunction with the F-35 and carry heavy loads of weapons. Israel has developed a variety of such weapons and the source that talked with Breaking Defense said, “we need a heavy truck for these systems.” That truck would be the F-15.

Eitan Ben Eliyahu former commander of the IAF, told Breaking Defense that the F-35 will add two main capabilities to the IAF: “The stealth is one major capability especially in our region, where enemy countries are operating huge numbers of ground-to-air weapons. The second capability is the one that allows this aircraft to receive and distribute all kinds of combat data from a long list of sensors. This is very important for an air force that is performing combat missions almost continuously.”

So far, Israel has signed contracts for 50 F-35s. The plan is to buy 25 more. That was the desired size of the F-35 fleet when the IAF decided to buy the stealth fighter [emphasis added]. SO Are THE 25 MORE THEY ARE BUYING A SURPRISE?

The IAF plan is to upgrade its existing fleet of F-15I’s to the level of the IA variant. This will add to the budget burden.

The voices for the purchase of more F-35 were based on its capability to gather and share intelligence. “With the threats Israel faces this capability is essential,” one of the sources said. Last year the IAF’s F-35 participated in a massive exercise and proved their capability to serve as “targets generator” for other fighter aircraft.

One of the main scenarios is attacking targets protected by Russian made S-300 and S-400 surface – air missiles. The F-35’s participated for the first time in such an exercise, designed to penetrate the northern sector, and proved their worth. The F-35 is the only aircraft designed with a requirement that it be able to defeat advanced Russian SAM systems, like the S-300, which are operational in Syria. The IAF did not explain why the exercise simulated areas protected by the more advanced S-400, like the ones purchased by Turkey. One explanation may be based on Turkey’s declaration that it might deploy the S-400 near its border with Syria.

Israeli sources said that the S-400 may be rushed to the area “under certain circumstances” and that is the reason that the pilots are being trained against it. Those sources added that the current dispute about the gas reservoirs in the Mediterranean has the potential to cause “major confrontations”.

Another scenario is of the IAF suppressing salvos of missiles launched by the Hezbollah in Lebanon, which has an arsenal of some 140.000 rockets, some with very heavy warheads. According to Colonel A. from the IAF: “The enemy is capable of launching big salvos of rockets. Our mission is to strike even before a single rocket is launched.”

The two aircraft will be equipped with some Israeli developed systems. The F-15IA will carry more of these, as access to its baseline systems is easier. The F-35’s advanced electronic warfare systems, security systems and other sensors are heavily protected by the United States...

The Lockheed Martin F-35 test aircraft will be delivered to the Israeli Air Force (IAF) later this year together with six additional aircraft part of the 50 under contract. So far twenty aircraft have been delivered...

Some of the Israeli defense companies have been busy adapting unique electronic systems and weapon systems that fit the operational requirement of the IAF.  The Israeli companies that are developing systems for the IAF’s F-35’s are reluctant to provide any details about the systems under development, but sources say the focus is on special air-to-ground systems and systems that can enhance the F-35 capabilities as a “knowledge center” for other forces in the air, on the ground and at sea.
https://breakingdefense.com/2020/02/israel-buys-stealth-lotsa-weapons-2nd-squadron-of-f-35s-f-15s/

Mark
Ottawa

 

[Colin Parkinson]

Oh Dear
https://www.duffelblog.com/2020/03/f-35-tests-positive-for-coronavirus/?utm_campaign=coschedule&utm_source=facebook_page&utm_medium=Duffel%20Blog&utm_content=F-35%20tests%20positive%20for%20Coronavirus&fbclid=IwAR3GK_SQsdjT99aj92UgZbD8T-0ZlA8M8k3d7WL8tnFYtiXWXlAx7yy2MHg

 

[MarkOttawa]

USAF F-35As for Eielson--note they are for Pacific, do not (for time being at least) have NORAD mission. That remains with F-22s at Elmendorf (and might some F-15EXs go to Alaska for NORAD?):

Mark
Ottawa

More on USAF F-35As at Eielson, Alaska (note are part of Pacific Air Forces, not assigned to NORAD mission https://www.pacaf.af.mil/News/Tag/12405/eielson-air-force-base/):

Sprawling Alaska Complex Becomes Newest Home For F-35A

Tucked deep within Alaska’s rugged interior, next to a town named “North Pole,” Eielson AFB may seem an unlikely station for 54 Lockheed Martin F-35As. But the commander of the 354th Fighter Wing asserts the location is more central than it looks.

Indeed, the logic of Euclidean geometry places Eielson within a daylong flight, assisted by aerial refueling, of the biggest hot spots for the Indo-Pacific Command and European Command. On a great circle route, the Alaskan base is closer to Taiwan than Oahu by more than 300 nm. To reach Estonia across the Arctic Circle, Eileson’s future F-35As would have roughly the same ferry flight as Air National Guard F-35As flying from Burlington, Vermont, the next-closest U.S. F-35 base [emphasis added].

“A lot of people think Alaska is kind of stuck in the corner of the map. But as an airman lives, we’re actually in the middle of everything,” says Col. Benjamin Bishop, the 354th Wing’s commander.

Another advantage of Eielson’s location is its neighbors. Although a remote location, the base is less than 230 nm north of a Lockheed Martin F-22 squadron stationed at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson [these have the NORAD mission]...

...In early April, Lockheed transferred ownership to the Air Force of the first F-35A bound for the newly reactivated 356th Fighter Sqdn. at Eielson. Despite administrative disruptions caused by the response to the novel coronavirus and resulting COVID-19 pandemic, Bishop still expects to complete the first F-35A delivery to Eielson on schedule in April. The 356th should receive ownership of its first three F-35As by the end of April.

The 356th was reactivated seven months ago with only two employees—the squadron commander and the deputy. Since then, the squadron has added eight trained pilots and a full complement of trainers and maintainers, Bishop says. About 1,200 active duty personnel will be added to the base when the 356th and a still-unnamed second squadron are at full strength, doubling the size of the Alaskan base’s current workforce.

The Air Force has been preparing for Eielson’s dramatic growth since the F-35A basing announcement in 2016...

Norway qualified a drag parachute to slow the F-35A on icy arctic runways in winter. The Polish Air Force adopted the same modification with its announced F-35A selection in January, but the U.S. Air Force decided the added weight of the drag parachute is unnecessary. The Air Force decision is helped by the fact that Eielson boasts the world’s second-longest runway, at 14,507 ft. [emphasis added], which the base’s busy snowplows work to keep clear through the long Alaskan winter, Bishop says. The F-35A is rated to land and take off from surfaces with a Runway Condition Rating (RCR) of 7, only two steps up from a completely iced-over RCR-5 surface.

“We have a whole team of airmen that are really focused on that [snow-removal] mission alone, and it’s not just the runways. It’s the taxiways, too,” Bishop says...
https://aviationweek.com/defense-space/aircraft-propulsion/sprawling-alaska-complex-becomes-newest-home-f-35a

Mark
Ottawa

 

[MarkOttawa]

Slowly, slowly:

The Pentagon has cut the number of serious F-35 technical flaws in half

The U.S. Defense Department is slowly but surely whittling down the number of F-35 technical problems, with the fighter jet program’s most serious issues decreasing from 13 to seven over the past year.

In June 2019, Defense News published an investigation delving into the details of 13 previously unreported category 1 deficiencies — the designation given to major flaws that impact safety or mission effectiveness.

Following the report, five of those 13 category 1 problems have been “closed,” meaning they were eliminated or sufficiently corrected. Five were downgraded to a lower level of deficiency after actions were taken to help mitigate negative effects, and three issues remain open and unsolved, according to the F-35 program executive office.

Four additional CAT 1 problems have also since been added to the list, raising the total CAT 1 deficiencies to seven. The program office declined to provide additional details about those issues for classification reasons, but stated that software updates should allow all of them to be closed by the end of 2020 [emphasis added].

“The F-35 Lightning II Joint Program Office is keenly aware of these existing F-35-related category 1 deficiencies and is focused on developing and implementing solutions for these issues as quickly as possible,” the program office said in response to questions from Defense News. “F-35 operator safety is the F-35 JPO’s highest priority.”

In a statement to Defense News, F-35 manufacturer Lockheed Martin confirmed the number of open category 1 deficiencies. However, the company declined to provide further information about the path to fix current issues or how earlier issues had been ameliorated [emphasis added].

“We are actively addressing the deficiencies and expect all to be downgraded or closed this year,” the company said.

While the overall reduction in deficiencies is a promising trend, it is also important to track how problems are solved and how quickly fixes are pushed to the rest of the fleet, said Dan Grazier, an analyst with the independent watchdog group Project on Government Oversight.

“I’m not surprised that they are continuing to find issues. This is why we are supposed to be testing weapon systems before we buy a whole bunch of them. I am a little surprised that we are finding CAT 1 deficiencies at this point during operational testing,” Grazier said.

“I think that speaks to the level of complexity with this program that it’s taken us this long to get to this point, and even after all the testing that has been done and the time and money that has gone into this that we’re still finding category 1 issues," he added. "It shows that the program wasn’t born in the right place. It was way too ambitious from the very beginning.”

Aside from four classified problems, there remain three open category 1 deficiencies in need of a fix. There are myriad reasons for that, the program office stated [read on]...
https://www.defensenews.com/smr/hidden-troubles-f35/2020/04/24/the-pentagon-has-cut-the-number-of-serious-f-35-technical-flaws-in-half/

Mark
Ottawa

 

[tomahawk6]

One advantage that Eilson AFB enjoys is its proximity to a massive bombing range for training at Blair Lakes.

https://thelivingmoon.com/45jack_files/03files/Fairbanks_Alaska_Unknown.html

 

[MarkOttawa]

Slowly, slowly:

Mark
Ottawa

Plus this, presumably affects A version too--what effect, if any, would very limited supersonic capability have on RCAF F-35As doing NORAD intercepts vs Russkie bombers (Tu-160?) and their cruise missiles in an actual combat situation (further links at orginal)?

The Pentagon will have to live with limits on F-35’s supersonic flights

An issue that risks damage to the F-35’s tail section if the aircraft needs to maintain supersonic speeds is not worth fixing and will instead be addressed by changing the operating parameters, the F-35 Joint Program Office told Defense News in a statement Friday.

The deficiency, first reported by Defense News in 2019, means that at extremely high altitudes, the U.S. Navy’s and Marine Corps’ versions of the F-35 jet can only fly at supersonic speeds for short bursts of time before there is a risk of structural damage and loss of stealth capability.

The problem may make it impossible for the Navy’s F-35C to conduct supersonic intercepts [emphasis added].

“This issue was closed on December 17, 2019 with no further actions and concurrence from the U.S. services,” the F-35 JPO statement read. “The [deficiency report] was closed under the category of ‘no plan to correct,’ which is used by the F-35 team when the operator value provided by a complete fix does not justify the estimated cost of that fix [emphasis added].

“In this case, the solution would require a lengthy development and flight testing of a material coating that can tolerate the flight environment for unlimited time while satisfying the weight and other requirements of a control surface. Instead, the issue is being addressed procedurally by imposing a time limit on high-speed flight.”

The carrier-launched "C" variant and the short-takeoff-and-vertical-landing "B" version will both be able to carry out all their missions without correcting the deficiency, the JPO said.

The potential damage from sustained high speeds would influence not only the F-35’s airframe and the low-observable coating that keeps it stealthy, but also the myriad antennas located on the back of the plane that are currently vulnerable to damage, according to documents exclusively obtained by Defense News.

The JPO had classified the issues for the "B" and "C" models as separate category 1 deficiencies, indicating in one document that the problem presents a challenge to accomplishing one of the key missions of the fighter jet. In this scale, category 1 represents the most serious type of deficiency.

While it may seem dire that an aircraft procured for flying at supersonic speeds will be unable to do so for extended periods, the F-35 may not need to do it that often.

For the F-35, as opposed to the F-22 where supersonic flight is baked into its tactics, the ability to fly supersonic is more of a “break glass in case of emergency” feature, said Bryan Clark, an analyst with the Hudson Institute and a retired naval officer.

“Supersonic flight is not a big feature of the F-35,” Clark said. “It’s capable of it, but when you talk to F-35 pilots, they’ll say they’d fly supersonic in such limited times and cases that — while having the ability is nice because you never know when you are going to need to run away from something very fast — it’s just not a main feature for their tactics [emphasis added].”

In fact, going supersonic obviates the main advantages of the F-35, Clark said. “It sort of defeats all the main advantages of the F-35,” he explained. “It takes you out of stealthiness, it burns gas like crazy so you lose the range benefits of a single engine and larger fuel tank. When you go into afterburner, you are heating up the outside of your aircraft.”

That creates all kinds of signatures that can be detected by an adversary, Clark said.

What if?

But a retired naval aviator told Defense News last year that the limitations on the afterburner could prove deadly in close-combat scenarios.

The concept of operations for the F-35 is to kill an enemy aircraft before it can detect the fighter jet, but relying on long-range kills is a perspective that, for historical and cultural reasons, naval aviation distrusts. In the Vietnam War, when air warfare began heavily relying on missiles and moved away from the forward gun, it caused a spike in air-to-air combat deaths [read on]...
https://www.defensenews.com/air/2020/04/24/the-pentagon-will-have-to-live-with-limits-on-f-35s-supersonic-flights/

Mark
Ottawa

 

[dimsum]

Plus this, presumably affects A version too--what effect, if any, would very limited supersonic capability have on RCAF F-35As doing NORAD intercepts vs Russkie bombers (Tu-160?) and their cruise missiles in an actual combat situation (further links at orginal)?

Mark
Ottawa

I'm not so sure.  The article is pretty explicit that it's just the B and C models that are affected.

 

[MarkOttawa]

I was wrong--those supersonic  limitations, for various technical reasons, do not apply to F-35A, sorry for the diversion.

Mark
Ottawa

 

[Quirky]

One advantage that Eilson AFB enjoys is its proximity to a massive bombing range for training at Blair Lakes.

https://thelivingmoon.com/45jack_files/03files/Fairbanks_Alaska_Unknown.html

Having been to Eielson it reminds me a lot of Cold Lake, I wonder if that base suffers from the same issues or are USAF pers more regularly rotated out?

 

[suffolkowner]

Having been to Eielson it reminds me a lot of Cold Lake, I wonder if that base suffers from the same issues or are USAF pers more regularly rotated out?

Quirky, I wondered this as well but do you not think that the greater number of choices probably allows for some self selection. For example some people might actually prefer that posting versus something more urban/southern. Whereas in Canada there are only the two bases and a limited fighter pilot pool

 

[tomahawk6]

The usual duty assignment is 2-3 years but its possible to ask for an extension as Alaska is a popular assignment as its classified as an overseas tour.