Lawmakers criticize "$100 Million Paperweights" that are rarely ready for use
Amid the growing controversy surrounding the program for the creation of fifth-generation F-35 fighter jets, a particularly serious criticism was voiced at a hearing in the House of Representatives Committee on Armed Forces.
At the center of the discussion was a recent audit conducted by the Government Accountability Office, according to which projected program maintenance costs have increased by 44 percent since 2018, increasing from $1.1 trillion in 2018 to $1.58 trillion in 2023 over the lifetime of the fleet.
This is in addition to the planned $2 trillion in future expenditures for the purchase of 1,800 additional aircraft.
The report also highlights that the fighter has a particularly low "full combat capability" rating, which is on par with the even more problematic F-22.
The F-35B variant had a particularly low rate of full combat capability, i.e. full mission readiness, even among other F-35s — only 14.9 percent, and this option is the most expensive and difficult.
Very low availability rates have been the focus of criticism by lawmakers in the past, as newly built aircraft were expected to have much better performance and fewer maintenance problems than worn-out Cold War-era F-15 and F-16 aircraft, many of which have been in service for more than three decades.
The new revelations from the audit of the US Accounting Chamber followed confirmation from Lockheed Martin, which manufactures aircraft, that deliveries in 2024 will be 27-50 percent lower than expected and that the Technology Refresh 3 (TR-3) upgrade package, which is already a year behind schedule, most likely will not be ready before 2025.
At the hearing, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, in particular, refuted the opinion of Representative Matt Getz that the F-35s are "paperweights" worth hundreds of millions of dollars," referring to their low readiness coefficient and very limited viability/suitability for high-intensity combat operations.
“If he's not fit for combat missions, can we just look at him and admire him? Getz asked, to which Austin replied, “We continue to work to ensure that our aircraft are operational."
Austin's predecessors as Secretary of Defense were noticeably more critical of the F-35 program, and his immediate predecessor, Secretary of Defense Christopher K. Miller, called the program a "monster" created by the military, and the fighter itself a "piece of ... [shit]."
The critical renewal of the F-35 fleet is postponed for an even longer period: in 2024, production will be reduced by 27-50 percent
 |
| Source: topwar.ru |
It has been confirmed that the avionics update according to the Technology Refresh 3 (TR-3) standard for the fifth-generation F-35 fighter is delayed for an even longer period. The modernization package is already a year overdue, although it was originally planned that it would be ready by April 2023.
The Pentagon, in particular, refused to adopt F-35 aircraft without these improvements, which significantly slowed down the entry of the fighter into service.
The reasons for the delays were software problems, difficulties integrating new software with new aircraft hardware, as well as significant delays in the production of key new components needed to produce the F-35 to improved standards.
After years of dissatisfaction caused by criticism of delays in software updates by lawmakers, Representative Donald Norcross said in mid-April at a hearing of the House Armed Services Subcommittee on tactical air and ground forces: "We held this meeting, returned to it year after year, talked about it, and every year We've been dropping the subject. There's always something new. You have to understand this disappointment."
Lockheed Martin sought to limit the impact of the delays by delivering a stripped-down version of the F-35 with only partially applied improvements to the TR-3, deliveries of which are expected to begin in August-September.
The delay in upgrading has been one of the main concerns raised by a number of customers, from the Belgian Air Force, which rejected fighter jets delivered in August 2023 due to the lack of upgraded software, to the US Marine Corps, which is increasingly protesting.
 |
| Assembly of the F-35. |
| Source: militarywatchmagazine.com |
Lockheed Martin CEO Jim Tyklett confirmed that in 2024, the company will deliver only 75 to 110 F-35s, meaning deliveries will amount to only 50-73 percent of the approximately 150 aircraft previously expected.
After reducing production in 2023 and further reducing production in this year, this will make the current 2024 potentially the first year when the Chinese fifth-generation J-20 fighter will overtake the F-35 as the most produced fighter in the world.
Speaking about the delays hindering efforts to upgrade the F-35 to the TR-3 standard, Tyklet explained the problem as follows: "What we faced on the TR-3 was a dramatically high level of complexity for this very significant expansion of capabilities."
"We are refining all the software on all the new hardware and integrating into all the other aircraft systems, and it took longer than our team predicted. We would like to do this sooner, but this is our schedule,” he added.
The original source: militarywatchmagazine.com
The source of the translation: newsstreet.ru
