American and Israeli F-35s trained together earlier this week, in the second bilateral exercise between the two countries focusing on Joint Strike Fighter operations. The exercise, called Enduring Lightning II, “illustrates the close relationship between the air forces and military echelons and enhances the cooperation ...
F-35 Joint Strike Fighter
House and Senate lawmakers are headed into conference for the fiscal 2021 defense policy bill after both chambers passed their respective legislation this week. Senators voted 86-14 to approve their version of the National Defense Authorization Act on July 23. The House voted 295-125 to ...
House lawmakers hammered Lockheed Martin for persistent problems in the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter enterprise during a July 22 hearing, as the defense giant declined to promise it would fully reimburse the Pentagon for defective equipment files. At issue are electronic equipment logs, which act ...
The Pentagon will acquire eight F-35A jets previously bound for Turkey, plus six more F-35As under an $861.7 million contract. The contract modifies a previous fixed-price award and “exercises options to procure eight Lot 14 F-35A Lightning II repositioned aircraft as a result of the ...
Japan has gotten a green light from the State Department to buy 105 more F-35s in two variants, which will make that country the largest operator of the Lightning II outside the U.S. The news comes the same week Japan's defense ministry informed the country's ...
The Air Force's F-35A fleet has become its third-largest fighter fleet—larger than that of the F-15C/D or E variants and larger than the F-22 Raptor fleet—and the type will likely surpass 250 air frames by the end of August, according to the Joint Program Office. ...
The Air Force formally accepted delivery of Lockheed Martin’s F-35 Distributed Mission Training capability, following a capstone event at Nellis Air Force Base, Nev., where four Joint Strike Fighter pilots flew alongside F-22s, F-16s, and an E-3 Sentry virtually for the first time. The DMT ...
Airmen from Eielson Air Force Base in Alaska recently finished the first bombs for the 354th Fighter Wing’s F-35A strike fighters. Eielson, which received its first two F-35s on April 21, is the first Pacific Air Forces base to host F-35s. The fighter delivery and ...
A problem with an inert gas system meant to protect F-35 fighters if they're struck by lightning has led to a safety order to avoid thunderstorms. Lockheed Martin advised the Air Force to route F-35s around potential lightning conditions until the issue is resolved, the ...
Members of one House committee are calling for an investigation into Lockheed Martin for its handling of F-35 spare parts, while another has crafted language in its markup of the 2021 defense policy bill calling for an assessment of the Joint Strike Fighter’s troubled sustainment ...
Fighter jets won support among senators in new defense policy legislation that also raised questions about some of the Air Force’s top priorities. The Senate Armed Services Committee approved a $740.5 billion version of the fiscal 2021 defense policy bill 25-2 on June 10. Its ...
An F-35A fighter jet’s landing gear collapsed at Hill Air Force Base, Utah, on June 8 when the aircraft was returning from a routine training flight, according to a base spokesperson. The accident occurred at 10:45 a.m. local time. The pilot, part of the 388th ...