The F-35 sill has problems that create risks for pilot safety and vastly limits its ability to perform its basic missions.
* F-35B and F-35C pilots have limitations on airspeed to avoid damage to the F-35’s airframe or stealth coating.
* Cockpit pressure spikes cause “excruciating” ear and sinus pain.
* Issues with the helmet-mounted display and night vision camera that contribute to the difficulty of landing the F-35C on an aircraft carrier.
The yearly Lockheed Martin production rate will increase from the 91 jets in 2018 to over 160 by 2023.
Supersonic flight in excess of Mach 1.2 can cause structural damage and blistering to the stealth coating of the F-35B and F-35C.
After doing certain maneuvers, F-35B and F-35C pilots are not always able to completely control the aircraft’s pitch, roll and yaw.
These problems and several others will not be fixed before the planes go into higher volume production.
23 aircraft in the test fleet achieved a fully mission capable rate of 8.7 percent in June 2019. This means 2 out of 23 planes were fully mission capable at any one time. Since the beginning of operational testing in December 2018, the fleet has had an average fully mission capable rate of just 11 percent. The average is 3 out of 23 planes were mission ready.
The US Air Force, Navy and Marines can’t independently perform many of the most basic maintenance functions on the F-35 and must instead rely on civilian contractors. Lockheed Martin currently receives $2 billion a year to keep the fleet of approximately 400 aircraft flying. The annual operating cost for each F-35 is $5 million.
The cost projections stating $80 million per plane costs are accounting tricks. The real costs are well over $100 million.
POGO.org reported that fifty out of 128 retired military officers who supported buying more F-35s had financial benefits for supporting the F-35.
SOURCES- Defense News, POGO
Written By Brian Wang, Nextbigfuture.com
Brian Wang is a prolific business-oriented writer of emerging and disruptive technologies. He is known for insightful articles that combine business and technical analysis that catches the attention of the general public and is also useful for those in the industries. He is the sole author and writer of
nextbigfuture.com, the top online science blog. He is also involved in angel investing and raising funds for breakthrough technology startup companies.
He gave the recent keynote presentation at Monte Jade event with a talk entitled the Future for You. He gave an annual update on molecular nanotechnology at Singularity University on nanotechnology, gave a TEDX talk on energy, and advises USC ASTE 527 (advanced space projects program). He has been interviewed for radio, professional organizations. podcasts and corporate events. He was recently interviewed by the radio program Steel on Steel on satellites and high altitude balloons that will track all movement in many parts of the USA.
He fundraises for various high impact technology companies and has worked in computer technology, insurance, healthcare and with corporate finance.
He has substantial familiarity with a broad range of breakthrough technologies like age reversal and antiaging, quantum computers, artificial intelligence, ocean tech, agtech, nuclear fission, advanced nuclear fission, space propulsion, satellites, imaging, molecular nanotechnology, biotechnology, medicine, blockchain, crypto and many other areas.
