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

bd popeye

bd popeye

The Last Jedi
VIP Professional
The Navy version of the story posted above..a little more detail;

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PACIFIC OCEAN (NNS) -- Five Lockheed Martin F-35B Lightning II aircraft landed on the amphibious assault ship USS America (LHA 6) on Friday, October 28.

America will embark seven F-35Bs -- two are scheduled to begin the third shipboard phase of developmental test (DT-III) and five are scheduled to conduct operational testing.

America, the first ship of its class, is an aviation-centric platform that incorporates key design elements to accommodate the fifth-generation fighter.

The ship's design features several aviation capabilities enhanced beyond previous amphibious assault ships which include an enlarged hangar deck, realignment and expansion of the aviation maintenance facilities, a significant increase in available stowage of parts and equipment, as well as increased aviation fuel capacity.

America is capable of accommodating F-35Bs, MV-22B Osprey tiltrotor aircraft, and a complement of Navy and Marine Corps helicopters.

The third test phase will evaluate F-35B Short Take-off Vertical Landing (STOVL) operations in a high-sea state, shipboard landings, and night operations. The cadre of flight test pilots, engineers, maintainers, and support personnel from the F-35 Patuxent River Integrated Test Force (ITF) are assigned to Air Test & Evaluation Squadron (VX) 23 at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Maryland.

"It's exciting to start the execution phase of our detachment with VMX-1 (Marine Operational Test and Evaluation Squadron 1) on USS America," said Lt. Col. Tom "Sally" Fields, F-35 Patuxent River ITF Government Flight Test director assigned to VX-23. "During the next three weeks, we will be completing critical flight test for both Developmental Test (DT) and Operational Test (OT). The F-35 Pax River ITF and VX-23 will be conducting DT work that will establish the boundaries of safe operation for the F-35B in the 3F configuration. VMX-1 will be conducting OT operations focused on preparing maintenance crews and pilots for the first deployment of the F-35B aboard USS Wasp (LHD 1), scheduled to start in just over a year."

The operational testing will also include simulating extensive maintenance aboard a ship, said Col. George Rowell, commanding officer of VMX-1, based at Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Arizona.

Rowell stated one of the VMX jets on board will be placed in the hangar bay, taken apart, and put together again, just to make sure everything goes well.

The maintenance work will include the replacement of a lift fan, the specialized equipment made by Rolls Royce and Pratt and Whitney that gives the F-35B variant its short take-off, "jump jet" capability, Rowell said.

The Marine Corps variant of the F-35 Lightning II reached the fleet first, with the service declaring initial operational capability July 2015.

"The F-35 Lightning II is the most versatile, agile, and technologically-advanced aircraft in the skies today, enabling our Corps to be the nation's force in readiness -- regardless of the threat, and regardless of the location of the battle," said Lt. Gen. Jon Davis, deputy commandant for aviation, Marine Corps. "As we modernize our fixed-wing aviation assets for the future, the continued development and fielding of the short take-off and vertical landing, the F-35B remains the centerpiece of this effort."

"The America class of amphibious assault ship design enables it to carry a larger and more diverse complement of aircraft, including the tiltrotor MV-22 Osprey, the new F-35 Lightning II, and a mix of cargo and assault helicopters," added Davis. "America is able to support a wide spectrum of military operations and missions, including putting Marines ashore for combat operations, launching air strikes, keeping sea lanes free and open for the movement of global commerce, and delivering humanitarian aid following a natural disaster."

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Jura The idiot

Jura The idiot

General
Sep 17, 2016
Jura said:
just one comment personally from me: I post news as they come and go!
15 F-35 Models Grounded Due to Wiring Issue
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News
Temporary Suspension of Flight Operations Announced for a Limited Number of F-35A Aircraft
September 16, 2016
at manufacturer's site
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now Repaired F-35s Return To Flight
Repaired U.S. Air Force
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are beginning to fly again after the discovery of faulty insulation inside the fuel tanks grounded 15 operational jets in September, the service confirmed to Aviation Week.

Two F-35s at Hill Air Force Base, Utah, returned to flight Oct. 24, and work on three more will wrap up by Nov. 4, according to Air Force spokesman Micah Garbarino.

News of the grounding came less than two months after the Air Force declared its
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F-35As ready for war, a setback that left Hill’s 34th Fighter Squadron, the service’s first operational F-35 squadron, scrambling for additional flying capacity. Altogether, 10 of Hill’s 15 F-35As were affected by the temporary flight restrictions, leaving the fighter wings with only five operational jets.

“With fewer jets to fly, that impacts sorties and training opportunities for pilots,” said Col. Jason Rueschhoff, 388th Operations Group commander.

To fit in critical training sorties, some of Hill’s pilots have been sent to Luke, Eglin and Nellis Air Force Bases to use any additional F-35s available, Rueschhoff said.

Meanwhile, maintainers at Hill also are pushing the unaffected jets to provide additional sorties.

“We’re triple-turning our aircraft. We’re hot-pitting [refueling with the engine running] and flying them three times a day. Normally the most a fighter wing will turn their aircraft is twice a day,” said Col. Michael Miles, 388th Maintenance Group commander.

But Lockheed apparently has the problem under control. Work on the affected jets is progressing faster than anticipated, and all 15 operational F-35s—13 U.S. and two Norwegian aircraft—are expected to fly by the end of the year.

In total, 57 operational and in-production F-35s were affected by the problem, which comes down to faulty cooling lines that were installed in the wing fuel tanks. Due to a supplier mistake, the tubing insulation on the polyalphaolefin (PAO) coolant tubes was not compatible with the fuel, which caused the insulation to crumble and peel off the tubing. This left residue in the fuel that could potentially obstruct fuel flow in and out of the various tanks.

To repair each of the jets, airmen at Hill first remove fuel and paneling, Garbarino explained. A field-team of contract maintainers then cuts pre-engineered holes in the jet’s skin to access specific points in the fuel tank. The team then strips the faulty coating from the coolant lines and installs screens to prevent any foreign object from clogging the fuel siphon-tubes. The problem is not expected to affect the engine’s performance; the worry is that the loose insulation will clog the filter between the wing tank and the fuselage tank, preventing fuel from moving in or out.

Finally, the team restores the jet’s skin and low-observable coating before completing operational checks and returning the aircraft to flight.

Despite early concerns that technicians were going to have to completely tear apart the wings to access and remove the loose insulation, Gen. Ellen Pawlikowski, chief of Air Force Materiel Command, downplayed the scope of the repair process, comparing the work to laparoscopic surgery.

“In the beginning they were concerned about how they were going to be able to get in there, but I think the engineers designed these small access holes and were able to figure out where to locate them so they could get good visuals and get in without massive cutting,” Pawlikowski said in a recent interview.

The JPO has elected not to retrofit the impacted jets with the proper insulation material right away, Pawlikowski said, explaining that it is not necessary until Block Four, the F-35’s follow-on modernization program. As more systems and computer power are added to the jet’s suite, the proper material will be needed to keep the coolant at a certain temperature; this material will be fed into the production line, Pawlikowski said.
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(I'm at loss about the last paragraph)
 
Jura The idiot

Jura The idiot

General
Jura The idiot

Jura The idiot

General
Oct 26, 2016
Jura said:
and here's the story based on the point of view of the Pentagon:
Pentagon Is Expected to Split Lockheed’s Next F-35 Order
Defense Department may first award deal for ninth batch of jets

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now ... I woke up to Pentagon Moves Forward — Unilaterally — on $6.1B Contract for Ninth F-35 Lot
The Pentagon on Wednesday evening announced a $6.1 billion contract with Lockheed Martin for the ninth lot of joint strike fighter aircraft, but the F-35 manufacturer is not happy with the terms of the arrangement, which was not mutually agreed upon, according to a company spokesman.

The contract covers 57 low rate initial production (LRIP) aircraft, which will be procured for 3.7 percent less than the LRIP 8 batch of jet, the F-35 joint program office stated.

The joint program office initially intended to broker a deal for LRIP 9 and 10 together, a contract F-35 program executive officer Lt. Gen. Christopher Bogdan had said would procure about 150 aircraft for a total contract value of about $14 billion. Lockheed and the government intended to finalize an agreement in the early months of this year, but as negotiations pressed on into the fourth quarter, the government opted to award a unilateral contract action — a decision Lockheed disputes.

“The definitized contract for LRIP 9 announced today was not a mutually agreed upon contract, it was a unilateral contract action, which obligates us to perform under standard terms and conditions, and previously agreed-to items,” said Lockheed spokesman Mike Rein. “We are disappointed with the decision by the government to issue a unilateral contract action on the F-35 LRIP 9 contract. For the past 18 months, Lockheed Martin has negotiated in good faith consistent with our commitment to reach a fair and reasonable agreement on this critical program. We will continue to execute on the F-35 program and we will evaluate our options and path forward.”

According to F-35 spokesman Joe DellaVedova, the government and Lockheed already agreed on the number of planes for LRIP 9, their configuration, the scope of work, and the terms and conditions for the contract. What could not be settled after more than a year was the total price of the contract, including the price per plane and the fee that Lockheed would receive.

“After 14 months of good faith negotiations, the government believed that further negotiations would not result on Lockheed and the government coming to an agreement on the total price of F-35 lot 9,” he told Defense News.

The LRIP 9 contract would represent the largest single unilateral contract action in the history of the Defense Department, an industry source close to the negotiations said.

Like DellaVedova, the source suggested that Lockheed believed that the government's contract position did not adequately address a realistic cost per plane or a fee that recognized Lockheed's investments and the requirements for meeting the delivery schedule.

“While the cost difference was small, the issues were fundamental," he said.

According to the source, Lockheed leadership can either accept the terms of the contract or appeal it with the Armed Services Board of Contracts Appeals, but a decision has not yet been reached.

The LRIP 9 contract includes 42 F-35As, 13 F-35Bs and 2 F-35Cs, which will begin delivery in the first quarter of 2017. The industry source suggested that perhaps the government had moved forward with a unilateral contract because the Lockheed was nearing delivery of the first LRIP 9 F-35s, while the parties still have time to agree on a deal for the tenth batch.

In a statement by the JPO sent to reporters, Bogdan alluded to his desire to work with Lockheed on future contracts.

“The LRIP 9 contract represents a fair and reasonable deal for the U.S. Government, the international partnership and industry,” he said. “We will continue to negotiate in good faith with industry to keep the F-35 affordable and provide the best possible value for our customers.”

Although JPO and Lockheed officials repeatedly told reporters that negotiations were progressing and not emblematic of a larger dispute, the inability to come together and cement a deal for F-35 LRIP 9 and 10 generated a number of financial headaches for Lockheed and the government over the latter half of 2016.

In July, the company’s chief financial officer, Bruce Tanner disclosed that it had spent nearly a billion dollars to compensate suppliers for expenses incurred on LRIP 9 and 10. A month later, Defense News learned that the F-35 joint program executive office had allocated about $1 billion in advance funding to help tide Lockheed over until a contract was reached.

In September, Bogdan said he believed he could reach a deal with Lockheed over LRIP 9 and 10 by the end of the year. He attributed the duration of negotiations to the size of the contract, which was much larger than previous lots such as the $4.7 billion LRIP 8 contract for 43 F-35s.

But Tanner, in an October earnings call, struck a more pessimistic note on the state of negotiations. The JPO and company still had not yet come to an agreement on the cost of performing the contract, the terms and conditions associated with the deal, and the profit level for the contractor, he said then.

Now, even with a contract definitized, it appears as though at least two of those elements continues to be a source of disagreement.
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all I can say right now is to repeat
Jura said:
...
you know, I've been following the current US Military acquisition system for three years now, and my feeling is the more I read about it, the less I understand ...
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FORBIN

FORBIN

Lieutenant General
Registered Member
F-35C CF-31for VFA-101 to Ft Worth during flight test, in general about 1 - 2 months for deliveries to unit after.
The last delivered must be CF-29 or 30 whose at less 6 USMC on 29 - 30.

VFA-101 must have now ~ 20/30, 15 USN and 5 USMC.
VFA-147 first front line surely receive the first next year for finish transition from F/A-18E in 2018.
VX-23 have 5 in more 5 B.
31 TES, USAF Edwards at less 1 C with 6 F-35A and 2 B.

F-35C.jpg

And a B
F-35B.jpg
 
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