Here Is A List Of All The Problems With The F-35

Two F-35B aircraft fly in formation over Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., in September 2013.

Business Insider: Pentagon: Here are all the problems with the F-35

The US military's fifth-generation fighter is no stranger to controversy.

The F-35, which comes with an estimated $1.5 trillion pricetag over the life of the program, has faced numerous hurdles and delays. Most recently, there have been concerns over its computer systems' vulnerability, and Chinese hackers have possibly stolen classified data related to the project.

The F-35's construction has continued, and it is being manufactured across multiple states and different countries. For better or worse, it's going to be the US and its allies' main warplane for decades to come.

WNU Editor: I suspect that this is just a partial list (no mention on the growing worry on the F-35 helmet that the pilots will use). On a side note .... the US Navy may want their version of the F-35 .... but they are hedging their bets by now wanting more F/A-18 Hornets .... Exclusive: U.S. Navy wish list has 12 Boeing jets, eight F-35s - sources (Reuters)

Update: Here is a brutal commentary on the F-35 .... The Disappointment That Is the F-35 (David Archibald, American Thinker). Even Mother Jones is now piling on .... The F-35 Is Still FUBAR (AJ Vicens, Mother Jones).

A Look At The $400 Billion War Plane That 'Does Not Fly'

Reuters

Brianna Ehley, The Fiscal Times: How to Build a $400 Billion F-35 That Doesn’t Fly

The Pentagon’s embattled F-35 Joint Strike Fighter continues to be plagued with so many problems that it can’t even pass the most basic requirements needed to fly in combat, despite soaring roughly $170 billion over budget.

As the most expensive weapons program in the Pentagon’s history, the $400 billion and counting F-35 is supposed to be unlike any other fighter jet—with high-tech computer capabilities that can identify a combatant plane at warp speed. However, major design flaws and test failures have placed the program under serious scrutiny for years—with auditors constantly questioning whether the jet will ever actually get off the ground, no matter how much money is thrown at it.

WNU Editor: A short and sweet summary on some of the many problems that are now plaguing the F-35.

Problems Continue To Mount For The F-35

Lockheed Martin F-35 jet fighter (Reuters/U.S. Marine Corps/DVIDS/Cpl. Shelby Shields)

Mandy Smithberger, War Is Boring: F-35 Still Years Away From Being Ready for Combat

America’s new fighter jet is plagued with engine, software and fuel tank problems

The F-35 continues to fail the most basic requirements for combat aircraft and common sense. Despite reforms, the F-35 continues to be unaffordable, its engines continue to be susceptible to fire, and the Pentagon continues to misrepresent its performance.

Below are just a few of the issues identified in a recent report from the Defense Department’s Director of Operational Test and Evaluation:

More News On The F-35

The F-35's onboard software system is having even more problems -- Business Insider
More Money, More Problems: F-35 Software Overwhelmed With False Alarms -- Sputnik
F-35 sensors plagued by false alarms - reports -- RT
F-35 Will Not Reach Full Close-Air-Support Potential Until 2022 -- DoD Buzz
F-35 won't be fully capable of close-air support until 2022 -- Autoblog
Italy Produces First F-35 Outside US -- Defense News
F-35 Pilots Test Aircraft in Extreme Sub-Zero Conditions -- Military.com
F-35 helmet uses retinal projection to give pilots a “God’s eye view” -- Geek
How Russia’s S-400 makes the F-35 obsolete -- RBTH
Air Force seeking public comment on F-35 basing in Alaska -- Air Force Times
Reform Pentagon Acquisition By Slowing Down the F-35 -- William D. Hartung, Defense One
F-35 Fighter Continues Next-Gen Attack on Taxpayer Wallets -- Lee Ferran, ABC News

The F-35 Will Not Be Able To Carry A Small Diameter Bomb II (SDB II) Load Until 2022

Daily Mail: Pentagon's most expensive fighter ever won't even be able to carry the most advanced weapons because of a design flaw

* Fighter jet F-35B's internal weapons bay is too small for a Small Diameter Bomb II (SDB II) load
* Though it's mandated that an F-35B hold eight SDB IIs in the bay, only four can reportedly fit
* A F-35 program spokesman has said changes are being made so the fighter jet can be released on schedule
* The SDB II can employ a number of techniques - including imaging infrared, laser, and radar homing - to hit targets
* The F-35 program will cost an estimated $590billion over the next decade
* F-35B is slated to be used by the British Royal Navy on the HMS Queen Elizabeth aircraft carrier

More News On The F-35 Not Being Able To Carry A Small Diameter Bomb II (SDB II) Load Until 2022

F-35B Internal Weapons Bay Can't Fit Required Load Of Small Diameter Bomb IIs (Updated) -- Inside Defense
F-35B 'Incapable' Of Carrying Small Diameter Bombs -- Defense World
F-35 Can't Carry Its Most Versatile Weapon Until At Least 2022 -- FoxTrot Alpha
The F-35B can't carry its most advanced weapon until 2022 -- Business Insider

Edward Snowden Leaks: Chinese Hackers Stole F-35 Plans

Sydney Morning Herald: China stole plans for a new fighter plane, spy documents have revealed

WNU Editor: The Chinese are not the only ones who want the blueprints for the F-35 .... Engineer accused of stealing F-35 blueprints for Iran (Sydney Morning Herald)

More News On Edward Snowden`s Latest Leak That Reveals Chinese Hackers Were Successful In Stealing The F-35 PlanséBlueprints

Snowden Reveals More Bad News for the $400 Billion F-35 -- Epoch Times
China stole F-35 blueprints from Lockheed, Snowden data appears to show -- Japan Times
Chinese spies 'stole plans for JSF' -- SKY News
50 terabytes! Snowden leak reveals massive size of F-35 blueprints hack by China -- RT
NSA Claims 50 TB F-35 “Secrets” Stolen by Chinese: Snowden Documents -- Defense World
Snowden doc leak 'confirms' China stole F-35 data -- The Register

China Denies Stealing The F-35s Blueprints

China rejects cyber-espionage allegations -- Xinhuanet
China Denies Snowden Leak That Beijing Hackers Stole F-35 Plans -- Business Insider/Reuters
China Dismisses Edward Snowden Claim That Its Spies Stole F-35 Fighter Design As 'Groundless' -- IBTimes
China Dismisses Allegations of US F-35 Stealth Fighter Data Theft -- Sputnik
China calls Edward Snowden's stealth jet hack accusations 'groundless' -- Straits Times

These Are The Weapons That The F-35 Can Carry

(Click on Image to Enlarge)

David Cenciotti, The Aviationist: The F-35 and its weapons suite

WNU Editor: More PR for a fighter jet that needs .... more PR.

Pentagon: The F-35's Main Gun Will Be Operational By 2017

Reuters

DoD Buzz: Pentagon: F-35 Gun Will Fire in 2017

WNU Editor: The Pentagon seems to be very sure of itself that the F-35 will have a gun that will fire by 2017 .... but as Dave Majumdar from The Daily Beast points out .... the Pentagon and Lockheed are being very careful on what they are promising .... Pentagon Misfires in Stealth Jet Scandal (Daily Beast).

Update #1: F-35 Program Office: Gun Remains On Schedule -- Defense News
Update #2: Lockheed Martin on F-35: No Gun Software Glitch; Sensor Upgrades Expected -- Roll Call

U.S. To Base F-35s In England By 2020

© Flickr/ US Air Force/Master Sgt. Donald R. Allen

More News On The U.S. Basing Its First F-35s In England By 2020

Pentagon to Put F-35s in U.K. as U.S. Sheds Bases in Europe
Air Force F-35 Squadrons Slated for RAF Lakenheath Basing -- US Department of Defense
RAF Lakenheath to host first F-35A squadron in Europe -- Air Force Times
US DoD confirms two F-35 squadrons will be based in UK -- Flight Global
US to Permanently Base F-35 Fighters in Europe: Pentagon -- Sputnik
US moving F-35 fighter jets to UK as Pentagon scales back European presence -- IBTimes

Did China And Russia Just Make The F-35 Obsolete?

Photo: Lockheed Martin

Did China Just Render America's $1 Trillion Stealth Fighter Program Obsolete? -- Rich Smith, The Motley Fool

Over-budget, behind schedule, and -- reportedly -- not a particularly good fighter jet, Lockheed Martin's ultramodern Joint Strike Fighter may be destined for the scrap heap.

In a 2013 RAND Corporation report, one of the nation's foremost military analysts, blasted the F-35 for being a fighter that "can't turn, can't climb, can't run." Proponents of the F-35 reply that because it's stealthy, it shouldn't have to do any of those things -- lobbing missiles at its foes from over the horizon, and long before they can even see it.

Unfortunately, it turns out that the F-35 may not do the "invisibility" thing very well, either.

Read more ....

My Comment: The bad news on the F-35 program continues to build up.