As i reacall SRVL trials were done, very successfully, on the Charles De Gaul with the VAAC.
All of that work then went into the F35B flying control software.
Hopefully Hammond is actually getting his information by reading the reports of the guys at Patuxent River who are flying the B and the C side by side 6 days a week. We have had RN and RAF engineers maintaining these jets since they left the factory who can tell Hammond exactly which is more reliable and serviceable from day to day.
However, unlike Panetta, he has not visited to get the truth straight from the horses mouth. As such he is relying on senior military people who may, or may not, have an agenda one way or the other.