F-35 Flights Suspended While F135 Fuel Tubes Checked; UK F-35Bs Keep Flying on HMS QE

F-35 Flights Suspended While F135 Fuel Tubes Checked; UK F-35Bs Keep Flying on HMS QE
F-35 Flights Suspended While F135 Fuel Tubes Checked; UK F-35Bs Keep Flying on HMS QE

UPDATED: Adds Rep. Turner Pledge To Hold HASC Hearings WASHINGTON: It may not last long, but the entire F-35 fleet — all versions from all countries — was just grounded “while the enterprise conducts a fleet-wide inspection of a fuel tube within the engine on all F-35 aircraft.” The British — clearly hungry to keep…

Lockheed Trumpets $4B More In F-35 Cost Savings

Lockheed Trumpets $4B More In F-35 Cost Savings
Lockheed Trumpets $4B More In F-35 Cost Savings

CORRECTED: Fixes CEO Marillyn Hewson’s name. Sigh… FARNBOROUGH: A pair of cost initiatives by Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, BAE Systems and the Pentagon should save up to $4 billion over the life of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program, officials said here today. Frank Kendall, the head Pentagon buyer, the F-35 Joint Program Office, and…

F-35 Christmas Presents: 45 Planes (And More?)

F-35 Christmas Presents: 45 Planes (And More?)
F-35 Christmas Presents: 45 Planes (And More?)

WASHINGTON: After years and years of busted schedules, cost overruns and technical challenges, the F-35 program is expected to end 2015 on a high note, with all production goals met and solid progress resolving the ejection seat issues that threaten lighter pilots. I understand from industry and program sources that, after getting stalled, there is a good…

The Joint Strike Fighter Really Is Joint; Fire Caused $50M In Damage

The Joint Strike Fighter Really Is Joint; Fire Caused $50M In Damage
The Joint Strike Fighter Really Is Joint; Fire Caused $50M In Damage

WASHINGTON: Here’s today’s news: the rotor failure that ripped apart an F-35A June 23 last year caused $50 million in damage to the aircraft, the Air Force’s Accident Investigation Board said today. Here’s the official version of what happened to the Air Force’s Joint Strike Fighter. “The engine failed when the third stage forward integral…

F-35 Engine Fix On Track; JPO Changing Mishap Notification

F-35 Engine Fix On Track; JPO Changing Mishap Notification
F-35 Engine Fix On Track; JPO Changing Mishap Notification

NATIONAL HARBOR: When the F-35A exploded June 23 on the runway, it took about 10 days before the Pentagon had worked out how to communicate to the public, to the Navy, Marines and Air Force and to its international partners what had happened, was happening and would happen. Today, Air Force Lt. Gen. Christopher Bogdan said that his…

F-35 Head Bogdan Explains The F135 ‘Bad Rub’ Fix

F-35 Head Bogdan Explains The F135 ‘Bad Rub’ Fix
F-35 Head Bogdan Explains The F135 ‘Bad Rub’ Fix

NATIONAL PRESS CLUB: It hasn’t been tested yet, and the “root cause” for the problem has not yet been identified, but Lt. Gen. Chris Bogdan, head of the F-35 program, expects upcoming tests to demonstrate a fix for the engine problem discovered when an Air Force F-35A engine exploded early this summer. The fix will be…

NO F-35s Coming To Farnborough; Safety First, Says SecDef Hagel

NO F-35s Coming To Farnborough; Safety First, Says SecDef Hagel
NO F-35s Coming To Farnborough; Safety First, Says SecDef Hagel

UPDATED: Safety Engine Inspections Make Trans-Atlantic Flights Impracticable   FARNBOROUGH AIR SHOW: That whoosh sound you just heard was the air rushing out of all the Pentagon officials, Lockheed Martin employees and the myriads who still hoped the F-35Bs would fly here. Rear Adm. John Kirby issued this statement at 7 p.m BST during a…

Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James: Top 3 Tough Money Choices

Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James: Top 3 Tough Money Choices
Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James: Top 3 Tough Money Choices

FARNBOROUGH AIR SHOW: Deborah Lee James had been in office a very short time when she learned of a crisis in the Air Force’s nuclear force and had to hold her first press conference as the service’s top civilian to discuss cheating and drugs. A tough start to a new job. She still faces a myriad…

F-35 May Still Visit Farnborough; All 98 Engines Inspected

F-35 May Still Visit Farnborough; All 98 Engines Inspected
F-35 May Still Visit Farnborough; All 98 Engines Inspected

FARNBOROUGH AIR SHOW:  Frank Kendall, the head Pentagon buyer, appeared here today on a high-powered panel of senior Pentagon civilians and industry leaders, and averred that the F-35A fire last month does not pose a systemic risk to the program. Air Force Lt. Gen. Chris Bogdan, head of the F-35 program, told a packed room…

Kendall ID’s F-35 Fire Cause: ‘Not Systemic’

Kendall ID’s F-35 Fire Cause: ‘Not Systemic’
Kendall ID’s F-35 Fire Cause: ‘Not Systemic’

LONDON: The head of Pentagon acquisition told reporters here today that “we do not see at this point what I call a systemic problem” resulting from the F-35A fire that led to the grounding of the fleet. “We understand to a degree what happened here. The question is why did it happen,” according to reporting by…

Farnborough Fancies: The F-35, Expectations And Illusions

Farnborough Fancies: The F-35, Expectations And Illusions
Farnborough Fancies: The F-35, Expectations And Illusions

LONDON: Sitting in my room here across the street from the building where D-Day was planned and Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower huddled for months worrying over those shallow beaches and terrible cliffs, it’s easy to lose sight of the current agonistes faced by Lockheed Martin, the Pentagon leadership and our allies about the F-35A fire.…

F-35 Stumbles While New Long-Range Strike Bomber Starts In Secret

F-35 Stumbles While New Long-Range Strike Bomber Starts In Secret
F-35 Stumbles While New Long-Range Strike Bomber Starts In Secret

EGLIN AIR FORCE BASE, FLORIDA: Even as Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel flew here with much fanfare to reaffirm his “strong, strong confidence” in the troubled F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, the Air Force quietly let slip they have started a competition for the Long-Range Strike Bomber. The two programs could hardly be more different. JSF is…

No Decisions Yet On F-35B UK Flights; Tomorrow Looms

No Decisions Yet On F-35B UK Flights; Tomorrow Looms
No Decisions Yet On F-35B UK Flights; Tomorrow Looms

WASHINGTON: The F-35Bs have not left Patuxent River Naval Air Station to make their way across the Atlantic Ocean. After an all–hands meeting this morning to discuss the issue of securing a waiver or permission to fly from NAVAIR, Naval Air Systems Command — who must decide if the Marine Corps planes are airworthy —…

F-35 Fleet Grounded: Air Show Flights May Still Happen

F-35 Fleet Grounded: Air Show Flights May Still Happen
F-35 Fleet Grounded: Air Show Flights May Still Happen

UPDATED: F-35s Grounded, Say OSD, JPO. Still Hoping For Air Show Flights (Thursday 9 pm) WASHINGTON: The Fourth of July may not be much of a holiday for the pilots and program officials trying to decide if the F-35 can fly safely to Britain after the recent fire at Eglin Air Force Base. UPDATE One…