F-35 Joint Strike Fighter News, Videos and pics Thread

run-of-the-mill
99 House lawmakers push for more F-35s
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With Lockheed’s fifth-generation F-35 and Boeing’s fourth-generation F-15X in a dogfight for budget dollars, a bipartisan group of 99 House lawmakers has called on colleagues to add 24 F-35s over President Donald Trump’s 2020 budget request, for a total of 102.

The Joint Strike Fighter Caucus, on Monday, sent a letter to lead House authorizers and defense appropriators, following an
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request that proposed buying F-15s after a 20-year hiatus while holding the F-35A buy-rate flat.

Caucus leaders sent the letter arguing their proposed production hike would reduce overall F-35 costs and ensure air dominance as, “adversaries continue to advance surface-to-air missile systems and develop their own stealth fighters.”

“In fact, as global threats continue to rise, the Department of Defense’s (DoD) Fiscal Year 2020 budget request, which includes funding for 78 F-35s (48 F-35As, 10 F-35Bs and 20 F-35Cs) – 15 less than Congress appropriated in Fiscal Year 2019 – leaves the Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps with a capability gap that 4th Generation, or legacy, aircraft cannot fulfill,” the letter argues.

“To reach the minimum 50% ratio of 5th Generation and 4th Generation fighters in the timeframe required to meet the threat, the U.S. must acquire F-35s in much larger quantities,” they wrote, adding later: “F-35 modernization is crucial for 4th generation aircraft systems, which are increasingly vulnerable and reliant on 5th generation production.”

The leaders of the caucus and the letter are Rep. John Larson, D-Conn.; Martha Roby, R-Ala.; Marc A. Veasey, D-Texas, and Mike Turner, R-Ohio.

They propose adding 12 F-35As for 60 total — which mirrors the Air Force’s
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— but also, 12 F-35Bs for 22 total. It does not add to the request for 20 F-35Cs.

The effort comes as both chambers of Congress prepare the annual process of drafting their authorization and appropriations bills, which typically extends beyond the summer. Such internal lobbying efforts are not unusual, and last year, congressional appropriators
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16 F-35s to the Pentagon’s request.

The recent letter emphasized the F-35’s lethality, its overseas deployments, its growing ubiquity among allies, its falling per-aircraft price tag and its impact on the American economy — “by supporting more than 1,500 suppliers and more than 194,000 direct and indirect jobs across the country.”

The lawmakers said that an unspecified increase in funding would help the F-35 get in line with a Pentagon
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that 80 percent of key tactical aircraft be mission capable. It would pay for, “spare parts and depot level repair capability to meet the required availability rates and accelerate the stand-up repair process of mandated organic government repair capabilities.”

While the lawmakers argue for a production ramp up, the government’s F-35 Joint Program Office and Lockheed
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in recent weeks that as production rates have risen, so have manufacturing defects connected to the jet’s unique stealth features. In September, the Pentagon temporarily halted F-35 deliveries to correct production errors.

The Pentagon, meanwhile, has also pressed Lockheed to lower costs more rapidly.

Lockheed Martin chief executive Marillyn Hewson, earlier this year,
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her company’s progress toward getting the unit cost down to $80 million. Its price dropped below $90 million for the first time last year as the company has been producing the planes at a faster rate.

The decision to include eight F-15Xs in the Pentagon’s 2020 request is expected to feature prominently as Air Force officials appear for Capitol Hill budget hearings this week. Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson
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the service did not initially seek the F-15Xs.

Pentagon officials
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the decision, driven by the Cost Assessment and Program Evaluation office, was in part meant to maintain a robust defense-industrial base, and they have discounted reports that acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan, a former Boeing executive, influenced the process.
 
Saturday at 11:17 PM
noted
US, South Korea celebrate first South Korean F-35A and ‘iron clad’ alliance
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plus this vid:
an automatic translation of its description works as far as I can tell
Saturday at 7:47 AM
Japan declares F-35A squadron initial-operation capable
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(dated 29 March, 2019) doesn't say how many aircraft the squadron comprises now; is it still 1 (one)?

asking because Jan 31, 2018
so
Asia allies take major steps forward with F-35 rollout
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Japan and South Korea both reached milestones with their Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighters.

The Japan Air Self-Defense Force or JASDF declared initial operating capability for
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on March 29th when the 302 Hikotai at Misawa Air Base in the northern part of the main Japanese island of Honshu held a ceremony to celebrate its F-35As.

Vice Admiral Mat Winter, F-35 program executive officer said in a statement that “this is a major milestone for the F-35 enterprise, as it marks the first F-35 IOC for an Indo-Pacific region customer.”

The 302 Hikotai only stopped flying its last McDonnell-Douglas/Mitsubishi F-4EJ-kai Phantom IIs at its former base of Hyakuri, north of Japan’s capital Tokyo, the week prior. Another JASDF Phantom II squadron will transition to the F-35A over the next year.

Japan plans to eventually acquire a total of 157 F-35s, which will include 42 F-35Bs. It plans to use the latter variant, which is capable to short take off and vertical landing operations, to equip Japan’s Izumo-class helicopter destroyers. The ships, which are currently only capable of supporting helicopters on board, will be modified to handle F-35 operations.

Meanwhile, neighboring South Korea
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that same day, when the aircraft were ferried across the Pacific to an air base in Cheongju, 140 kilometers southeast of the capital Seoul.

South Korea’s Yonhap News Agency quoted Wang Jung-hong, head of the Defense Acquisition Program Administration as saying that South Korea expects the F-35 “to enhance the Air Force’s operational capabilities in response to the neighboring countries’ introduction of stealth fighters, and to strengthen the readiness posture against threats from all directions."

The first South Korean F-35A was rolled out in March 2018 at Lockheed-Martin’s plant in Fort Worth, Texas and since that time the Republic of Korea Air Force or ROKAF has been training up its initial cadre of pilots and maintainers on its jets at Luke Air Force Base in Arizona. According to Yonhap, eight more F-35s are due to return to the country by the end of this year.

The U.S. ally has 40 F-35As on order under a 2014 contract worth about $7 billion, all of which will be delivered by 2021. Defense News understands that the first unit to operate the South Korean F-35s will be the ROKAF’s Cheongju-based 17th Fighter Wing.
 
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Senators, generals, and the acting Defense Secretary all tried to present a united front on Tuesday, but questions remain.

... and only time can tell
Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan expressed optimism on Tuesday that Turkey will cancel plans to buy Russia’s S-400 SAM system one day after the
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the US had halted shipments of F-35
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in an effort to punish the NATO ally for moving ahead with the controversial purchase.

Meanwhile, the the presumptive head of European Command, Gen. Told Wolters, testified before the Senate Armed Services committee that he would recommend blocking all F-35 shipments to Turkey should Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s government buy the S-400 later this year.

The general said he agrees with “this committee’s belief that the S-400 and the F-35 are not compatible, and if Turkey proceeds down a path to procure and operate the S-400, they should not get the F-35,” adding, “we all understand that Turkey is an important ally in the region, but it’s absolutely unsustainable to support co-location of an F-35 and S-400.”

Shanahan stuck an optimistic note when he told reporters at the Pentagon: “I expect them to be delivered.”

His confidence stems in part from what he sees as the good deal the US has offered Turkey, floating a $3.5 billion offer in December for the Patriot air defense system that would take the place of the S-400.

But Turkish officials have given no indication that they’re about to choose Patriot over its Russian counterpart, which carries a price tag of $2.5 billion. Turkish officials continue to maintain that the S-400 deal has been wrapped up, and they expect delivery to begin later this year.

Still, Shanahan said, “I am very confident in the Patriot proposal that we’ve delivered to Turkey, its availability, it’s pricing, and very importantly, the industrial participation that comes along with the Patriot system.” Turkey also stands to lose substantial industrial benefits if it is forced to leave the Joint Strike Fighter program, which will happen if the S-400 deal goes through.

But the Pentagon’s top leader said he has “had a number of conversations” with Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar, “and I really think we’ll resolve this situation with our strategic partners.”

The Pentagon has not released any readouts from any of those discussions, though Shanahan and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Gen. Joseph Dunford met in February with Akar and Gen. Yaşar Güler, chief of the Turkish General Staff, at the Pentagon.

Speaking to reporters Tuesday ahead of a two-day NATO summit in Washington, a senior US official said Turkey remains an important partner to the United States, and “our relationship is not being defined by the single issue of the S-400, but the S-400 is a deeply problematic issue for the United States.”

It doesn’t appear that Sen. Roger Wicker shares Shanahan’s optimism, telling Wolters that the Turkish insistence on buying the S-400 — which would put NATO aircraft operating in Turkey at risk — “is not what one would expect from an ally and it calls into question a lot of things that we’ve assumed from our long-term ally.”

“Turkey is a partner in the supply chain in the Joint Strike Fighter, so we not only have to look at whether we can transfer those assets to Turkey, but we also have to determine what role Turkey could play in the supply chain,” Tillis said.
it's
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Brumby

Major
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Senators, generals, and the acting Defense Secretary all tried to present a united front on Tuesday, but questions remain.

... and only time can tellit's
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There is no struggle. The decision has been made. Washington is just going through the process and allowing Turkey a chance to step up as a coalition partner. Suspension of delivery is the right step in the interim. I don't know how the F-35 program is going to deal with the supply chain problem until this Mexican standoff is resolved. If Turney goes for the S400 then they are not getting any F-35s. The worst scenario is Turkey not honouring its commitment after getting its hands on the F-35.
 
There is no struggle. The decision has been made. Washington is just going through the process and allowing Turkey a chance to step up as a coalition partner. Suspension of delivery is the right step in the interim. I don't know how the F-35 program is going to deal with the supply chain problem until this Mexican standoff is resolved. If Turney goes for the S400 then they are not getting any F-35s. The worst scenario is Turkey not honouring its commitment after getting its hands on the F-35.
Mar 13, 2018
...

F-35 Project resembles Comecon to me

LOL link for those not coming from Eastern Block:
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time will tell the rest
 

Brumby

Major
The Comecon article is just too much to digest. I gave up after the first paragraph.

The F-35 is a willing participant program. Like all membership, there are rules. In this instance, Turkey is potentially egregiously and consciously jeopardising the program Turkey just can't have the cake and eat it too. It is not just an issue between the US and Turkey. It put at risk all participants to the program.
 
There is no struggle. ...
... well,
Trump may ‘take care’ of F-35, S-400 issue, Turkish official claims
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Standing on a 360-degree stage, surrounded by NATO members and supporters on the alliance’s 70th birthday, less than two hours before the
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is scheduled to make an appearance before a rare joint session of the U.S. Congress, Turkey’s foreign minister planted his flag.

“Turkey doesn’t have to choose between Russia and any others, and we don’t see our relationship with Russia as an alternative to others,”
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, Minister of Foreign Affairs for Turkey, said at the NATO Engages event. “Nobody, neither west nor Russia, should ask us to choose."

Throughout the 30-minute appearance, Çavuşoğlu underlined Turkey’s view that his nation must engage with Russia as well as the west, in order to maximize both political and business potential for Ankara. But he was most direct when discussing the plan to buy Russia’s S-400 system, which has become an
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for the alliance, saying it is “definitely” going to happen.

“It’s a done deal,” Çavuşoğlu said. “This is a done deal.”

Çavuşoğlu also claimed that U.S. President Donald Trump has opened the door to keeping F-35 sales to Turkey going, despite a Pentagon
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that the Department of Defense was cutting off delivery of parts for the plane, needed in advance of Turkey taking the jets into service this summer, due to the S-400 issue.

Top
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have said the S-400 cannot be allowed to tie into any NATO systems, but the F-35 in particular, given its importance to a number of allied nations for at least the next thirty years.

Çavuşoğlu sidestepped repeated questions about what impact losing the industrial participation of the F-35 program could have on Turkey’s economy, saying “we are a part of this program. It should be that simple.”

But notably, he expressed a belief that the F-35 sales will eventually turn back on, noting “different statements are coming from different institutions of the United States as well… different and contradictory statements are coming.”

Asked what he meant, Çavuşoğlu claimed that a phone call “recently” from U.S. President Donald Trump to Turkish President Recep Erdoğan involved Trump promising that he “would take care of this issue.”

In response, a senior administration official said, “We have been clear and consistent in emphasizing our grave concerns on the S-400 acquisition with representatives of the Turkish government on numerous occasions and at the highest levels.”

Çavuşoğlu said Turkey has also proposed a technical working group inside NATO to figure out how to keep the S-400 firewalled off from other systems, saying “it doesn’t have to be integrated to a NATO system, and that is not our aim. This is for our own use.”

“This is an urgent need of Turkey. We need air defense systems urgently… because of the traffic in the neighborhood. Everybody has missiles in the neighboring countries, in Syria, in others. NATO is not capable enough to cover our airspace yet,” the minister added.

The U.S. is hoping to entice Turkey to drop the S-400 in favor of the Patriot missile system, with Acting Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan telling reporters yesterday that “I am very confident in the Patriot proposal that we’ve delivered to Turkey, its availability, its pricing, and very importantly, the industrial participation that comes along with the Patriot system.”

But while the U.S. has put forth a
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, Çavuşoğlu said that proposal “doesn’t guarantee the United State will be able to sell Patriot to Turkey.” (The minister is correct; the Patriot offer is just a way forward, and could in the future be blocked by Congress should the legislative body decide to do so.)

The “contradictory” statements from the U.S. are not limited to the S-400, Çavuşoğlu later noted, with Syria serving as the most obvious example. He cited how the Pentagon, State Department, U.S. Central Command and the White House have all issued different takes on the long-term future of America in that country, and its purpose for being in Syria.

Asked directly if he knew what U.S. foreign policy in Syria is, Çavuşoğlu replied, “No. And this is the problem.”
 
Twitter account
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noticed this:
D3N-7GdW4AIEFEG.jpg


it's indeed at p. 27 of
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which I've now downloaded

EDIT
as for Lot 9, May 30, 2017
... I checked myself what I found in Internet ... well it doesn't seem to make sense but:

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says 'Lot IX' $698032385

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says 'Lot IX' $60000000

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says spares for Lot 9 $237765479

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says nonrecurring items for 'Lot IX' for $431322997

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several items for Lot 9 $430878490

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something for 'Lot IX' for $120555991

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says 'Lot IX' $ for $5370955495

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several items for Lot 9 $181765203

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says Lot 9 $743169377

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this one is particularly funny: "... to provide additional funding for affordability-based cost reduction initiatives in support of low-rate initial production Lot 9 F-35 ..." $137834819

LOL I skipped several contracts below $100m but still:
698032385+60000000+237765479+431322997+430878490+120555991+5370955495+181765203+743169377+137834819 = 8,412,280,236
(of course they said 'a $6.1 billion deal'
Lockheed ‘Disappointed’ by Pentagon’s Latest F-35 Contract November 2, 2016
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)
8412280236/57 is almost 148m ... for one of Lot 9 without an engine and so called LOT 9 AIRFRAME UPGRADE AND RETROFIT CONTRACTS
... apparently also documented in the mind-boggling link
Unit Cost of F-35s Delivered This Year Still Exceeds $206M
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Last edited:
thought somebody would post these:
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Assault ship USS
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on 29 March in the South China Sea with at least 10 F-35B
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Joint Strike Fighters of Marine Fighter Attack Squadron VMFA-121; 4 MV-22
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on deck as well. She arrived at Subic Bay 30 March for annual Balikatan exercises with the Philippines.

D3NA0BxWwAAOaDP.jpg

D3NBEKfW4AA_xb3.jpg

D3NBFnvW0AAAAet.jpg

D3NBIFnXoAUPNbf.jpg
 
F-35 related part of
Navy Rules Out Suspected Physiological Episodes Cause While Super Hornet Rates Grow in 2019
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:

"As for the Joint Strike Fighter, “F-35 has experienced on average the same or slightly less rate of physiological events that other aircraft have,” Vice Adm. Mathias Winter, the program executive officer for F-35 Lightning II, said at the hearing.

Winter described three technology areas the PEO is pursuing to get ahead of any potential increases in PE events in F-35 pilots.

First, on OBOGS, “we found that it was providing the appropriate concentration of oxygen to our pilots, but there was a variation in it that, if we reduced that variation, would eliminate a potential causal factor,” Winter said, and added that the program was working to eliminate that variation so they could focus on other potential causal factors.

Second, the F-35 has a sensor in the seat that measures cockpit pressure and immediately initiates emergency oxygen if it senses the pressure is too low.

“It was too sensitive, so we’ve gone back and looked at that based upon pilot input, and we’re doing a seat portion assembly upgrade,” he said.

And lastly, the F-35 program is adding a more sophisticated carbon monoxide filter, despite gas contaminants not being an issue on the Super Hornet and T-45 jets.

All three will be included in new jets starting with the next contract, Lot 12, and will be retrofitted into all jets already built starting next quarter, Winter added."
 
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