Another week and another F35 grounding

Another week and another F35 grounding. This time it was a bad software upgrade to the ALIS ground support system has grounded the Marine Corps F-35B squadron based in Yuma, Arizona, the F-35 Joint Program Office announced.

The Air Force’s F-35As did not have the faulty upgrade, but the F35s have problems with the pilot’s air supply at high altitude. This problem temporarily grounded the F-35As at Luke Air Force Base, before they returned to flight under a restriction to low altitudes only. Air supply — drawn from the engine intakes the On-Board Oxygen Generation System (OBOGS) — has proven a problem for multiple types of aircraft, notably the Navy and Marine F-18 Hornet fighter and the Navy T-45 trainer.

Flight operations in Marine Fighter Attack Squadron (VMFA) 211 resumed after a temporary one-day suspension to fix a problem related to a software update with the aircraft’s Autonomic Logistics Information System, the Marine Corps announced.