F-35 Cancelled, then what ?
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On a different tack does anyone have any ideas how the US Navy will use the aircraft WRT to the F-18E? I'm sure not too many will disagree in calling both aircraft jack of all trades in terms of performance - but one is stealthy and the other isn't.
I can't imagine you would have F-35 doing Air Defence and the Typhoon A-G?
It would appear that we'll soon have some real F-35 vs. A-10 data:
A-10 vs. F-35: Air Force warplanes to face off - CNNPolitics.com
Time to grab some popcorn
A-10 vs. F-35: Air Force warplanes to face off - CNNPolitics.com
"We are going to do a comparative test of the ability of the F-35 to perform close air support, combat search-and-rescue missions and related missions with the A-10," Michael Gilmore, the Pentagon's director of operational test and evaluation, told a Senate Armed Service Committee hearing on Tuesday.
Time to grab some popcorn
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@typerated
The Navy intends to use its F-35Cs to replace F/A-18A-D. The Super Hornets and the remaining legacy Hornets will continue to fly all missions until there are sufficient numbers of F-35Cs in fleet service, at which time the Super Hornets will transition to more of an AD force, while the F-35C prosecute the deep strike missions in contested airspace.
However, block 3F F-35s are limited in in the number and types of weapons they can employ, so the plan is to use them as forward sensor nodes and armed scouts until block 4.x comes online sometime in the 2020's. Block 4.x is a major upgrade in capability for the F-35s, but will be delivered in increments. What will be included in each increment has not been decided, but it will require an ICP upgrade / TR to support new weapons, radar modes and EW capabilities, and from past experience, re-hosting software onto new hardware has not been a smooth process for the program. The Navy needs block 4.x to support ASMs, anti-radiation missiles and/or an expendable EW payload, otherwise the Super Hornets will have to continue to fly all missions - which they probably will anyway.
The Navy intends to use its F-35Cs to replace F/A-18A-D. The Super Hornets and the remaining legacy Hornets will continue to fly all missions until there are sufficient numbers of F-35Cs in fleet service, at which time the Super Hornets will transition to more of an AD force, while the F-35C prosecute the deep strike missions in contested airspace.
However, block 3F F-35s are limited in in the number and types of weapons they can employ, so the plan is to use them as forward sensor nodes and armed scouts until block 4.x comes online sometime in the 2020's. Block 4.x is a major upgrade in capability for the F-35s, but will be delivered in increments. What will be included in each increment has not been decided, but it will require an ICP upgrade / TR to support new weapons, radar modes and EW capabilities, and from past experience, re-hosting software onto new hardware has not been a smooth process for the program. The Navy needs block 4.x to support ASMs, anti-radiation missiles and/or an expendable EW payload, otherwise the Super Hornets will have to continue to fly all missions - which they probably will anyway.
Ecce Homo! Loquitur...
Only One of Six Air Force F-35s Could Actually Take Off During Testing
Five of six Air Force F-35 fighter jets were unable to take off during a recent exercise due to software bugs that continue to hamstring the world’s most sophisticated—and most expensive—warplane.
During a mock deployment at Mountain Home Air Force Base in Idaho, just one of the $100 million Lockheed Martin F-35s was able to boot its software successfully and get itself airborne during an exercise designed to test the readiness of the F-35, FlightGlobal reports. Nonetheless, the Air Force plans to declare its F-35s combat-ready later this year.
Details surrounding the failed exercise were disclosed earlier this week in written testimony presented to Congress by J. Michael Gilmore, the Pentagon’s chief weapons tester. “The Air Force attempted two alert launch procedures during the Mountain Home deployment, where multiple F-35A aircraft were preflighted and prepared for a rapid launch, but only one of the six aircraft was able to complete the alert launch sequence and successfully takeoff,” Gilmore wrote. “Problems during startup that required system or aircraft shutdowns and restarts – a symptom of immature systems and software–prevented the other alert launches from being completed.”
It’s not the only recent example of “immature systems and software” stalling progress on the $400 billion F-35 program. Aside from reports of glitches affecting both the onboard and ground-based software that drive the F-35—including bugs in the F-35’s radar software that requires periodic in-air radar reboots and maintenance software problems that could potentially ground the entire fleet—Gilmore detailed another recent example in which F-35s had to abort their test mission due to software stability issues. In that incident, two of four F-35s loaded with an earlier version of the combat jet’s software were forced to abort a test of the aircraft’s radar jamming and threat detection capabilities due to software stability problems encountered at startup. The aircraft that were able to fly didn’t do so well in the evaluation either, Gilmore added.
Perhaps more troublesome for the F-35 program, overall, is the fact that software stability seems to be getting worse. U.S. Marine Corps F-35Bs loaded with an earlier version of the software are reportedly the most stable, enjoying up to eight hours between “software stability events,” military lingo for glitches in one of the aircraft’s computer programs. The Marine Corps has already declared its F-35s combat ready, though Gilmore acknowledged that in real-world combat the F-35B would require assistance acquiring targets and avoiding threats. The Air Force runs a newer version of the software known as “Block 3i” on its F-35s, and gets roughly half the time between significant software glitches—though F-35 program chief Lt. Gen. Christopher Bogdan recently told reporters that a new version of Block 3i software appears to have tripled in stability during tests, going up to 15 hours without a serious software issue.
Earlier this week Bogdan told reporters that despite the software issues, the Air Force still plans to declare its F-35s combat-ready sometime later this year. That could happen as soon as August, he said, though problems with the F-35s ground-based maintenance software will likely push that declaration back 60 days to October.
Five of six Air Force F-35 fighter jets were unable to take off during a recent exercise due to software bugs that continue to hamstring the world’s most sophisticated—and most expensive—warplane.
During a mock deployment at Mountain Home Air Force Base in Idaho, just one of the $100 million Lockheed Martin F-35s was able to boot its software successfully and get itself airborne during an exercise designed to test the readiness of the F-35, FlightGlobal reports. Nonetheless, the Air Force plans to declare its F-35s combat-ready later this year.
Details surrounding the failed exercise were disclosed earlier this week in written testimony presented to Congress by J. Michael Gilmore, the Pentagon’s chief weapons tester. “The Air Force attempted two alert launch procedures during the Mountain Home deployment, where multiple F-35A aircraft were preflighted and prepared for a rapid launch, but only one of the six aircraft was able to complete the alert launch sequence and successfully takeoff,” Gilmore wrote. “Problems during startup that required system or aircraft shutdowns and restarts – a symptom of immature systems and software–prevented the other alert launches from being completed.”
It’s not the only recent example of “immature systems and software” stalling progress on the $400 billion F-35 program. Aside from reports of glitches affecting both the onboard and ground-based software that drive the F-35—including bugs in the F-35’s radar software that requires periodic in-air radar reboots and maintenance software problems that could potentially ground the entire fleet—Gilmore detailed another recent example in which F-35s had to abort their test mission due to software stability issues. In that incident, two of four F-35s loaded with an earlier version of the combat jet’s software were forced to abort a test of the aircraft’s radar jamming and threat detection capabilities due to software stability problems encountered at startup. The aircraft that were able to fly didn’t do so well in the evaluation either, Gilmore added.
Perhaps more troublesome for the F-35 program, overall, is the fact that software stability seems to be getting worse. U.S. Marine Corps F-35Bs loaded with an earlier version of the software are reportedly the most stable, enjoying up to eight hours between “software stability events,” military lingo for glitches in one of the aircraft’s computer programs. The Marine Corps has already declared its F-35s combat ready, though Gilmore acknowledged that in real-world combat the F-35B would require assistance acquiring targets and avoiding threats. The Air Force runs a newer version of the software known as “Block 3i” on its F-35s, and gets roughly half the time between significant software glitches—though F-35 program chief Lt. Gen. Christopher Bogdan recently told reporters that a new version of Block 3i software appears to have tripled in stability during tests, going up to 15 hours without a serious software issue.
Earlier this week Bogdan told reporters that despite the software issues, the Air Force still plans to declare its F-35s combat-ready sometime later this year. That could happen as soon as August, he said, though problems with the F-35s ground-based maintenance software will likely push that declaration back 60 days to October.
Ecce Homo! Loquitur...
Ecce Homo! Loquitur...
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And another tidbit surfaced in last week's Senate hearing on the F-35: During the course of the Marines "expeditionary" deployment at 29 Palms, two F-35B jets were downed by FOD. This was not widely publicized by the Marines, SLD, the program office, or the other usual suspects. It was contained in written testimony from the DOT&E. No wonder some have their knives out for that organization - it seems it is the only source of factual and non-biased / untainted information on the program.
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And another tidbit surfaced in last week's Senate hearing on the F-35: During the course of the Marines "expeditionary" deployment at 29 Palms, two F-35B jets were downed by FOD. This was not widely publicized by the Marines, SLD, the program office, or the other usual suspects. It was contained in written testimony from the DOT&E. No wonder some have their knives out for that organization - it seems it is the only source of factual and non-biased / untainted information on the program.
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"The Marine Corps conducted an assessment of F-35B austere site deployed operations at Twentynine Palms, California, from December 8 – 16, 2015, with eight F-35B aircraft assigned. The Marines intended to fly four aircraft a day from an expeditionary landing field made of aluminum matting and with minimal permanent infrastructure, representing the type of temporary airfield that can be quickly built near the forward line of troops. The demonstration included the use of inert ordnance and production representative support equipment. Aircraft availability for this detachment was again in the 55 to 60 percent range, which led to a significant number of missed flights on the planned flight schedule. The detachment flew 41 out of 79 planned missions; however, 22 of the 38 missions not flown were due to high crosswinds which made landing and taking off from the aluminum matting too risky. Overall, 16 missions were lost due to either lack of aircraft availability, difficulties in transferring and accepting aircraft data into the deployed ALIS, or ground aborts. Propulsion system maintenance was particularly burdensome. Two F-35B aircraft received foreign object damage to their engine fan stages, a result from operating in rugged conditions with jet wash likely blowing small rocks into aircraft intakes. This prevented those aircraft from further participation in flying activities until repairs were completed just prior to the ferry flights home. A contractor technician was called in from the East Coast and was able to repair the engine damage on site, as opposed to having to perform a full engine swap. A further engine system discrepancy required an aircraft swap around mid- way through the detachment. Routine flight operations, such as aircraft start-up and basic troubleshooting, also relied heavily on contractor maintenance."
Two F-35B aircraft received foreign object damage to their engine fan stages, a result from operating in rugged conditions with jet wash likely blowing small rocks into aircraft intakes.
On this forum, such events seem to be assumed to be F-35 specific unless proved otherwise. 
(One would think that a form of procedural mitigation learned from Harrier ops would be the key to avoiding this? 
)
Tip of the iceberg, as software gets more patches and fixes to meet timetables/schedules?
(One would think that a form of procedural mitigation learned from Harrier ops would be the key to avoiding this? )
Perhaps more troublesome for the F-35 program, overall, is the fact that software stability seems to be getting worse.
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During the course of the Marines "expeditionary" deployment at 29 Palms, two F-35B jets were downed by FOD.
Incredible Jet Landing on an Aircraft Carrier
Ecce Homo! Loquitur...
"Block-Buy" vs "Multi-Year". Not all weasels are politicians......
F-35 Stealth Fighter Chief Struggles to Justify Block Buy | The National Interest Blog
F-35 Stealth Fighter Chief Struggles to Justify Block Buy | The National Interest Blog
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"Block-Buy" vs "Multi-Year". Not all weasels are politicians......
F-35 Stealth Fighter Chief Struggles to Justify Block Buy | The National Interest Blog
F-35 Stealth Fighter Chief Struggles to Justify Block Buy | The National Interest Blog
Ecce Homo! Loquitur...
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So what is going to die first, F35B or USMC FJ aviation?
A "the choice is yours" moment approaches..
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Quite a strange article really.
It seems to suggest that "hoarding" money in advance of a new purchase was unwise.
It seems perfectly reasonable that there will transitional difficulties.
It seems to suggest that "hoarding" money in advance of a new purchase was unwise.
It seems perfectly reasonable that there will transitional difficulties.
The slow-motion collapse of the combat squadrons could
The Marines’ wish list for 2017 includes a staggering $800 million for warplane spare parts
Axe pretends that spares for current inventory and APN-1 acquisition projects are the same thing. They aren't. By law the money is a different color for each. If he's such a
ing expert, he'd know that. But he isn't. In his defense: the problem he describes, the extended deployments and the home training squadrons having few up birds is a very real one. Always has been. Deployed forces get supply priority over home based forces. That's a decades old story.
The conclusion Axe draws from this is ... well, his usual line of manure.