A proposed House policy bill would slash the variety of F-35 Joint Strike Fighters the Pentagon would buy in fiscal 2025 as lawmakers’ patience with this system and manufacturer Lockheed Martin wears thin.
The Pentagon’s proposed FY25 budget called for getting 68 of the fifth-generation fighter — 42 F-35As for the Air Force, plus 13 F-35Bs and 13 F-35Cs for the Navy and Marine Corps.
But the chairman’s mark of the House Armed Services Committee’s proposed FY25 National Defense Authorization Act would first cut that purchase to 58 jets. On top of that, the Pentagon wouldn’t be allowed to simply accept delivery of 10 of those jets until the defense secretary certifies to lawmakers that several problems with the F-35 are fixed.
That signifies that at the least at first, the Pentagon would only receive 48 jets in all next yr.
In a background briefing with reporters, a senior staff member for the committee’s Republican majority expressed displeasure with the F-35 program and Lockheed Martin. The Pentagon has halted deliveries of the most recent F-35s while Lockheed sorts out problems with its Technology Refresh 3 upgrades. An undisclosed variety of jets at the moment are sitting at the corporate’s facility in Fort Value, Texas.
“During the last couple of years, our members have grown frustrated with the F-35 program,” the Republican staffer said. “This yr, we’re scuffling with accepting airplanes from Lockheed Martin once they come off the road. So our members wanted to handle that because if you could have an aircraft come off [the production line and] we’re not accepting delivery, what’s the purpose? They’re just paperweights at that time.”
When asked for comment, Lockheed Martin wrote in an email to Defense News: “We look ahead to working with the administration and the Congress because the president’s fiscal yr 2025 budget receives full consideration within the months ahead.”
TR-3 is the name of a batch of upgrades to the F-35′s software and hardware, including improved displays, computer memory and processing power, which is able to lay the muse for a more extensive series of upgrades referred to as Block 4.
But problems with TR-3′s software, in addition to delays in production on some key components, have kept the most recent F-35s from working properly. TR-3 is now greater than a yr overdue, and deliveries may not resume until the third quarter of 2024. Even when delivery begins for the jets featuring TR-3, which could occur this yr, they won’t be ready for combat until 2025.
One other senior staffer for the committee’s Democrats said lawmakers wish to see the F-35 program succeed and that the Pentagon sorely needs the jet. But the issues with TR-3 should be sorted through so the Block 4 upgrades — which is able to include the flexibility to hold more weapons and higher electronic warfare capabilities — can follow, he added.
The Republican staffer said cutting the initial 10 F-35s from the procurement plan would save roughly $1 billion, which could then be reinvested into this system to make sure they work properly once they roll out of the factory and are delivered to the military.
He highlighted the jets’ software issues and radar problems as items that have to be fixed, noting it might be higher to purchase fewer jets to make sure the ones which can be delivered work properly and aren’t left sitting in Fort Value.
“That’s higher for the long-term health of the platform,” the Republican staffer said.
The Republican staffer added that the withholding of 10 more jets’ deliveries would prod the Pentagon to deliver plans to repair the aircraft’s problems, and encourage acquisition strategies that will improve issues found throughout the F-35 program.
The Republican staffer said the report on the F-35′s initial operational test and evaluation phase had several recommendations for things that need fixed with the jet, and that these reports should help provide a way forward.
“We’re doing a lot of things to attempt to mitigate some problems that the F-35 is having in production in order that it gets to the warfighter sooner,” the Republican staffer said.
Stephen Losey is the air warfare reporter for Defense News. He previously covered leadership and personnel issues at Air Force Times, and the Pentagon, special operations and air warfare at Military.com. He has traveled to the Middle East to cover U.S. Air Force operations.