Ongoing headaches with F-35 fighter jets are rippling through the rest of the US military's combat aircraft fleet

Years of delays, cost overruns, and technical glitches with the F-35 have put the Pentagon in a dilemma.

If F-35s aren't fit to fly in sufficient numbers, then older aircraft such as the F-16 must be kept in service to fill the gap. In turn, having to extend the lifespan of older planes consumes money that could be used to acquire new aircraft and results in aging warplanes that may not be capable of fulfilling their missions on the current battlefield.

"While service life extension programs are one way to keep current aircraft capable and in operation, they do not guarantee that those aircraft will be available when needed or that they will possess required capabilities to meet future needs," the Government Accountability Office warned in a new report on US tactical aircraft.

The F-35 is meant to be the backbone of the US Air Force, Navy, and Marine fighter fleets, replacing several types of Cold War-era fighters and attack aircraft, including Navy and Marine F/A-18 C/Ds, Marine AV-8Bs, Air Force A-10s, and, most importantly, Air Force F-16s, which are the US's most numerous fighters.

[img]https://i.insider.com/62fbd92bc87abe0018c2bff8?width=1000&format=jpeg&auto=webp[/img]

Despite making its first flight in 2006, the F-35 — which costs about $100 million apiece — still hasn't been approved for full-rate production and remains in limited procurement.

The aircraft has been plagued by a seemingly endless series of bugs, including problems with its stealth coating, sustained supersonic flight, helmet-mounted display, excessive vibration from its cannon, and even vulnerability to being hit by lightning.

The military and Lockheed Martin have resolved some of those problems, but the cumulative effect of the delays is that the Air Force has had to shelve plans for the F-35 to replace the F-16, which now will keep flying until the 2040s.

"Over the last decade the Air Force and Navy have funded service life extension programs for F-16s and F/A-18 A-Ds — both originally expected to be replaced by F-35 — to address fatigue of structural components and keep the aircraft capable and in operation," the GAO report said.

rottennaija:
Ongoing headaches with F-35 fighter jets are rippling through the rest of the US military's combat aircraft fleet

Years of delays, cost overruns, and technical glitches with the F-35 have put the Pentagon in a dilemma.

If F-35s aren't fit to fly in sufficient numbers, then older aircraft such as the F-16 must be kept in service to fill the gap. In turn, having to extend the lifespan of older planes consumes money that could be used to acquire new aircraft and results in aging warplanes that may not be capable of fulfilling their missions on the current battlefield.

"While service life extension programs are one way to keep current aircraft capable and in operation, they do not guarantee that those aircraft will be available when needed or that they will possess required capabilities to meet future needs," the Government Accountability Office warned in a new report on US tactical aircraft.

The F-35 is meant to be the backbone of the US Air Force, Navy, and Marine fighter fleets, replacing several types of Cold War-era fighters and attack aircraft, including Navy and Marine F/A-18 C/Ds, Marine AV-8Bs, Air Force A-10s, and, most importantly, Air Force F-16s, which are the US's most numerous fighters.

[img]https://i.insider.com/62fbd92bc87abe0018c2bff8?width=1000&format=jpeg&auto=webp[/img]

Despite making its first flight in 2006, the F-35 — which costs about $100 million apiece — still hasn't been approved for full-rate production and remains in limited procurement.

The aircraft has been plagued by a seemingly endless series of bugs, including problems with its stealth coating, sustained supersonic flight, helmet-mounted display, excessive vibration from its cannon, and even vulnerability to being hit by lightning.

The military and Lockheed Martin have resolved some of those problems, but the cumulative effect of the delays is that the Air Force has had to shelve plans for the F-35 to replace the F-16, which now will keep flying until the 2040s.

"Over the last decade the Air Force and Navy have funded service life extension programs for F-16s and F/A-18 A-Ds — both originally expected to be replaced by F-35 — to address fatigue of structural components and keep the aircraft capable and in operation," the GAO report said.

We for naija we are building our first commercial planes in 2023

China and Russia would laugh on hearing this.

President Biden signed the “Justice for Victims of War Crimes Act” into law this week. It gives the US the power to prosecute anyone in the world for war crimes.

The 2002 "Hague Invasion Act" protects US citizens from extradition to the ICC for war crimes.

BabbanBura:


We for naija we are building our first commercial planes in 2023

Yes and the day we decide to build our stealth aircraft, we may even get it into service before F35 can fly

In #Ukraine️ a protest by widows of fallen/ MIA #Ukranian fighters was planned in the next few days when women started to receive this intimidating text msgs. Telling them participating may result in "Consequences" they R told: you can't return your husbands, think of UR kids

some air alerts in #Ukraine
(explosions reported as well in Kharkov & Kiev - including power outages)

rottennaija:
President Biden signed the “Justice for Victims of War Crimes Act” into law this week. It gives the US the power to prosecute anyone in the world for war crimes.

The 2002 "Hague Invasion Act" protects US citizens from extradition to the ICC for war crimes.

who gave them the right to do so.its because of this every nation need nuclear weapons in their arsenal

Scrap metal lol.