What an unbelievable
ing mess.
That Cat in the Hat won't be able to pick this one up. Has anyone thought about what happens if (when) sequester kicks in in the US? Or if some of the numerous fixes and bodges being developed for the B add 100 pounds of weight apiece, or require the pilot to stooge around at 10,000 feet while the clutch cools down? Or that the system can't deliver improved VL performance without being redesigned completely?
Important point about Panetta's ending of probation: He did not reverse the key action that Gates took, which was to drop B production to a crawl until the aircraft worked. In fact, both B and C are in single digits until 2018-19 deliveries.