KenV & a1bill (et al?)
Perhaps you should brace yourselves before reading on.
Reporting a USAF press release, defense-aerospace.com includes this note:
EDITOR’S NOTE: Despite claims in various trade outlets, including here, the Italian air force F-35A that crossed the Atlantic on Feb 5 did not “feature all-Italian support,” but was instead accompanied by a Lockheed Martin maintenance team.
The relevant passage in emphasized in bold typeface in the above US Air Force Europe news item.
While this is just another of the obfuscations and errors that have marked official and media coverage of this event, it is significant that, in addition to Italian air force personnel, the aircraft had to be accompanied by Lockheed maintainers, even though it was built by Alenia (now Finmeccanica Aircraft Division) at Cameri.
It is not immediately clear why F-35 backers feel so compelled to “spin,” obfuscate and “massage” all information relating to the program.
My bold at the end.
If you click on
obfuscations and errors above, you get another excoriating note starting
After several days of official dithering and dissembling, and conflicting reports and retractions from the US Air Force and the F-35 Joint Program Office, we have determined that the JPO’s account of the F-35’s first transatlantic crossing was wrong.
Offered without further comment
airsound