The U.S. military said it had grounded the entire fleet of 97 Lockheed Martin Corp F-35 fighter jets until completion of additional inspections of the warplane’s single engine built by Pratt & Whitney, a unit of United Technologies Corp.
The Pentagon’s F-35 program office, Air Force and Navy issued directives on Thursday ordering the suspension of all F-35 flights after a June 23 fire on an Air Force F-35A jet at Eglin Air Force Base in Florida.
The Pentagon said U.S. and industry officials had not pinpointed the cause of the fire, which occurred as a pilot was preparing for takeoff. The pilot was not injured.
The incident is the latest to hit the Pentagon’s costliest weapons program, the $398.6 billion F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. It followed an in-flight oil leak that triggered mandatory fleetwide inspections of the jets last month. . .
MY husband, retired from the USA Air Force says it’s bolloney that ” they can spot the enemy at a greater distance……….” It’s who is stronger Boeing or Israel.
Israel intends to buy the F35 but the cost is about $150 million each and there may be some limitations on its performance. The basic strength is that the F35 can spot the enemy at a greater distance than the enemy can. This should mean the the enemy will be out classed. Meanwhile technical problems remain, costs are rising and delays are occurring. I have to wonder if this is a wise choice for Israel. Perhaps there are other options better suited for Israel. A former Israeli defense minister Moshe Arens suggested some time ago that Israel could build its own next generation military aircraft. I recall Israel’s Lavie fighter in the 1970’s that also had export potential but was killed by the U.S. to prevent competition. Buying the F35 also means Israel remains dependent on the U.S. for deliveries and spare parts. Not a good situation.
Israel should reject the F-35…. But she won’t
Posted by yamit82 August 27, 2010
🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂
I hope that finally the F-35 is set aside from the Israeli interests. It is dud all around.