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UPDATE 1-Italy cuts F-35 fighter orders by 30 pct ROME, Feb 15 (Reuters) - Italy will cut its order for Lockheed Martin Corp's radar-evading F-35 fighter planes by more than 30 percent as part of Prime Minister Mario Monti's battle against state spending, Defence Minister Giampaolo Di Paola said on Wednesday. Italy plans to buy 90 warplanes instead of the 131 it agreed to purchase a decade ago, Di Paola said in testimony to the joint Senate and Chamber of Deputies defence committees. 'It's a significant reduction that is coherent with our need to reduce spending,' he said. The reduction...

Delays in U.S. and international orders for Lockheed Martin Corp's new F-35 fighter jet will increase its total cost, Lockheed and U.S. officials said on Tuesday, as Italy announced a cut in spending on the warplane. On Monday, the Pentagon confirmed plans to put off orders for 179 F-35s over the next five years to save $15.1 billion and allow more time for testing, a third restructuring in recent years. U.S. officials insist they have not changed their plans to develop and buy 2,443 jets at a cost of $382 billion over the next few decades. Continued schedule delays and...

Italy seems certain to scale back its major investment in Lockheed Martin Corp's F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, heightening uncertainty over the troubled stealth jet's future. Defence Minister Giampaolo Di Paola has said repeatedly since January that the country's originally planned order of the 131 supersonic warplanes by 2018 was being "reviewed" because military spending cuts were necessary as part of Prime Minister Mario Monti's austerity plan to shore up public accounts. General Claudio Debertolis, secretary general of the Defence Ministry and the country's armaments chief, confirmed to lawmakers on Tuesday that cuts were expected. "There will be a revision of...

THE stealth qualities of the futuristic F-35 Joint Strike Fighter on order for the Royal Australian Air Force are overrated and the plane's combat performance greatly exaggerated, a defence lobby group has claimed. The complaints by Air Power Australia, longtime critics of the $16 billion JSF acquisition, were made last night before a public hearing of parliament's defence sub-committee. Latest-generation Russian fighters such as the Sukhoi T-50 would easily defeat the F-35 in air-to-air combat, Air Power's Peter Goon said, referring to recent modelling tests by his organisation. "The aircraft we are planning to buy is carrying over 2000 pounds...

Did Chinese cyber spying cause the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter’s cost spikes and production delays? That’s the question Pentagon budget officials are asking according to Aviation Week. Chinese spies apparently hacked into secure conference calls and listened to meetings discussing the classified technologies aboard the jets. In particular, China may have stolen info about the F-35’s secure communications and antenna systems; leading to costly software rewrites and other redesigns to compromised parts of the plane. The worst part, this problem isn’t just limited to the F-35, though the program’s size and the fact that it’s information systems were apparently designed...

Britain won't decide on F-35 fighter numbers till 2015 LONDON (Reuters) - Britain has deferred to 2015 a firm commitment on how many Lockheed Martin Corp F-35 Joint Strike Fighter jets it will buy, adding to uncertainties over the multinational program which has recently been questioned in the U.S. Congress. "We will not make final decisions on the overall number of aircraft we will order before the next planned Strategic Defence Review (in 2015)," a Ministry of Defence MoD spokeswoman said on Tuesday, adding an initial order would be placed next year. The F-35 project ranks as the most expensive...

Press Trust of India has quoted Pentagon spokesperson Commander Leslie Hullryde confirming that, contrary to press reports, the United States has not made available Lockheed Martin's advanced, fifth generation fighter jet F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighters to India. However, it was noted that should India express an interest, the United States would submit technical information and initiate a discussion. "Should India indicate interest in purchasing the JSF, the United States would be prepared to provide information on the JSF and its requirements (infrastructure, security, etc) to support India's future planning" The Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II is a family...

Navy's £5bn Harrier jet replacement 'unable to land on aircraft carriers' The Royal Navy's multi-billion pound fighter plane programme is under threat amid claims that its new all-purpose jets cannot land on aircraft carriers, it has emerged. Leaked Pentagon documents claim a design flaw in the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) has caused eight simulated landings to fail. The “F-35 Joint Strike Fighter Concurrency Quick Look Review” claimed the flaw meant that the “arrestor” hook, used to stop the plane during landing, was too close to the plane’s wheels. When a fighter lands on an aircraft carrier an arrestor cable catches...

First time in the air now for the Navy's carrier version of the Lockheed-Martin F-35 Lightning II, the F-35C- like all variants a descendant of the F-35X JSF (Joint Strike Fighter). While the F-35 program is not without it's problems, Navy test pilot Lt. Chris Tabert successfully flew the F-35C test aircraft -which features Harrier-type VTOL capabilities via advanced thrust-vectoring- on Nov. 18, the first launch of the carrier variant of the Joint Strike Fighter from the Navy's new electromagnetic aircraft launch system, 'set to install on future USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78)'... nice piece of kit, this thing: [YouTube] Video/specs/more at...

Three of the five developmental Lockheed Martin F-35Bs have developed tiny cracks in a lift fan-related component which prevent the flight-test aircraft from reconfiguring in flight and landing vertically. Two flight-test aircraft - BF-1 and BF-2 - are now being modified with a redesigned actuator support beam, according to the joint programme office. BF-4 has also developed "hairline" cracks in the same part, but is continuing to fly in conventional mode only until the part is modified, the programme said. The potential for cracks to develop in the actuator support beam was identified several years ago. A redesigned beam was...

US offers India the Joint Strike Fighter, top defence technology Washington, Nov 2 (IANS) Although the US lost out in the bid to sell India 126 multi-role combat jets, it has offered New Delhi ''top-of-the-line technology'', including ''the best in the world'' Joint Strike Fighter (JSF). "The US F-16 and F-18 competed, but were not down-selected, in the Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) competition in April 2011," the US defence department said in a report to the US Congress on US-India Security Cooperation. "Despite this setback, we believe US aircraft, such as the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF), to be the...

The F-35B, the VSTOL version of the Joint Strike Fighter made its first vertical landing on a US Navy Amphibious assault Ship, the USS Wasp LHD-1. F-35B makes vertical landing on USS Wasp, LHD-01 Here is the link to a video of the same: F-35B Makes 1st Vertical Landing onboard a US Navy LHD

Australia, Canada Share Concern About JSF Delay (Source: Australian Associated Press; published Sept. 12, 2011) Australia and Canada share a common concern that the new Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) will be delayed, possibly requiring acquisition of an expensive interim air combat capability. To present a united front, Australia and Canada will now conduct top level talks on procurement and capability issues of mutual concern. As well as JSF, that will also touch on submarines, with both Australia and Canada experiencing big problems on maintaining submarine capability. Visiting Canadian Defence Minister Peter MacKay said Canada wasn't backing away from plans to...

Just weeks after the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter got back to flight testing, a new design problem has cropped up. An aluminum beam in the wing structure has been found to be "defective," an issue that could lower the aircraft's wing life from 8,000 hours, or about 25 operational years, to just 1,200 hours, which equates to about five years of flying.

Save the Lightning Why we need the F-35 By Thomas Donnelly The Weekly Standard Tuesday, September 6, 2011 Thanks to the provisions of the Budget Control Act and the subsequent directions of President Obama's budget director, Jack Lew, the Department of Defense is figuring out how to trim $1 trillion from its current and planned budgets. Perhaps the principal target in the sights is the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program (aka the Lightning II)—a fact that neatly encapsulates the Pentagon's severe budgetary, programmatic, operational, and strategic problems. It's only modest hyperbole to conclude that as fares the Lightning, so fares...

The USMC's own Joint Strike Fighter (JSF)  variant brings unique STOVL capabilities... Descended from the X-35 prototype, the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program is primarily funded by the US and UK in an effort to replace aging fleets across all services- lead contractor on the massive project being Lockheed Martin.  To this point, only 13 test aircraft of all types have been constructed- most are in test/trainer service, and the stealthy single-seat, single-engine (Mach 1.6) fighters average $122M a copy. The Defense Department is planning to buy over 2400 planes, making it the most expensive defense program in US history... although...

In past few decades, the U.S. Air Force has spent untold billions researching and developing a family of stealth fighter jets that are supposed to be generations ahead of any dogfighters in the sky. But after building more than 170 F-22 Raptors and a handful of F-35 Joint Strike Fighters, not a single one is available for service. The Air Force currently has zero flyable stealth fighters. None.

Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Executive Vice President and F-35 program head, Tom Burbage, was in Canberra on August 9 to brief media on the latest developments with the JSF program. During the briefing, Burbage explained that the 20-strong JSF fleet’s recent grounding was a precautionary measure following the failure of an Integrated Power Pack (IPP) - a large APU-like component which provides starting power for the main engine and doubles to provide bleed air to cool the aircraft’s systems - on one of the flight test articles at Edwards AFB, AF-4. “The airplanes are in a stop mode right now because...

Officers feared purchase of Super Hornets a ploy to cut JSF orders # Mark Dodd # From: The Australian FEARING orders for the Joint Strike Fighter aircraft would be cut, Senior Royal Australian Air Force officers assured the Howard government the ageing fleet of F-111 bombers could fly until mid 2013. Launched this week, Air Force, by News Limited journalist Ian McPhedran, details the claims made by former Defence Minister Brenadan Nelson that the government's surprise decision to buy 24 Super Hornets prompted the air force officers' fears that future JSF orders would be cut. Dr Nelson said it became...

F-35B: Marvel or Edsel with wings? By: Charles Hoskinson August 3, 2011 10:29 PM EDT PATUXENT RIVER NAVAL AIR STATION, Md. — The F-35B is a supersonic stealth fighter jet with an unprecedented new twist: It can take off and land like a helicopter. That’s what makes the airplane a crucial part of the strategy to modernize the Marine Corps as it reverts to its traditional mission as America’s go-anywhere, quick-reaction force after 10 years of ground combat in Afghanistan and Iraq. It’s also what makes the airplane a vastly more expensive option and has caused the technical problems and...

MoD urged to buy cheaper Navy jets COST CONCERN An artists impression of a Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) aircraft soaring above the Royal Navys two new carriers By Michael Powell Published on Tuesday 2 August 2011 17:30 THE Ministry of Defence is facing internal pressure to pull out of buying F-35 Joint Strike Fighter jets for the Royal Navy’s new aircraft carriers, The News can reveal. A number of MoD officials are understood to be calling for Britain to withdraw from the under-fire Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) programme, which has faced criticism in America and Australia as costs run into...

F-35C Launches to New Milestone From: USNavyVisualNews | Jul 27, 2011 | 664 views LAKEHURST, N.J. (July 27, 2011) An F-35C test aircraft piloted by Lt. Christopher Tabert launches from a steam catapult for the first time. CF-3 is the designated carrier suitability test aircraft. The F-35C carrier variant of the Joint Strike Fighter is distinct from the F-35A and F-35B variants with its larger wing surfaces and reinforced landing gear for greater control in the demanding carrier take-off and landing environment. The F-35C is undergoing test and evaluation at NAS Patuxent River before eventual delivery to the fleet. (U.S....

On the Marines' Wish List: A Pricey Jet Fighter . By NATHAN HODGE NAVAL AIR STATION PATUXENT RIVER, Md.—As Washington flirts with default, the U.S. Marine Corps ferried journalists Friday to a Navy base in southern Maryland to view an exotic spectacle: the new Marine stealth jet, the F-35B Joint Strike Fighter, taking off and landing. According to military officials, this was the media's first chance to see the supersonic aircraft's most unique feature, its ability to hover and land vertically. It was also a chance for the Marine Corps to argue for keeping the program funded in an era...

US Debt Crisis Further Delays Australia’s Purchase of New F-35s As the US government grapples on addressing its budget issues, Australia's planned upgrade on its air defence capability could run into more glitches, according to the country's defence chief. Already hampered by delays and rising costs, Australia's proposed purchase of F-35 combat planes from the United States could meet new issues as the US Congress and US President Barack Obama struggle to strike a compromise that would resolve America's debt crisis, according to Defence Minister Stephen Smith. With the two branches of the US government currently deadlocked on any possible...

Risks in British Switch to Carrier Version of F-35 Identified By: Chris Pocock July 18, 2011 A report by the UK’s National Audit Office (NAO) has listed some risks arising from the decision by UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) to switch its Joint Strike Fighter selection from the F-35B STOVL (short takeoff and vertical landing) version to the F-35C carrier version. The decision was part of a defense review that delayed the in-service date of one of two new aircraft carriers to which the MoD was already fully committed, until 2018. The other new carrier will be kept in reserve...

First F-35 arrives at Eglin By ANGEL McCURDY Northwest Florida Daily News 315-4432 | amccurdy@nwfdailynews.com   EGLIN AFB — The first F-35 landed at the 33rd Fighter Wing on Thursday to applause and cheers. The first production model of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter arrived at Eglin Air Force Base about 1:15 p.m. from Lockheed Martin’s production plant in Fort Worth, Texas. “This is an extremely exciting day for us. We’ve been waiting two years for this day,” Col. Andrew Toth, commander of the 33rd, said as he waited for the jet to arrive. “Having it here is just outstanding....

New Delhi: India has officially put a full stop to the frantic US pressure to enter the $10.4-billion race for 126 Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA). Reacting to media reports that the US may offer F-35 fighter jets to re-enter the MMRCA race, the official spokesperson in the ministry of defence (MoD), Sitanshu Kar, told FE that, “We have progressed a lot in the MMRCA programme, we have crossed a lot of stages that have become part of history.” “It is too late in the day for any new entrant,” said a senior Indian Air Force (IAF) officer on condition...

This Week at War: The Jet That Ate the Pentagon The F-35 is cutting into the Defense Department's most important priorities. BY ROBERT HADDICK | MAY 27, 2011 Policymakers get 11th-hour second thoughts on the Joint Strike Fighter The troubled and long-delayed F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program came under renewed scrutiny this week. The Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps, and many foreign partners plan to buy thousands of the fighter-attack jets over the next two decades to replace a variety of aging aircraft, but the development schedule of the stealthy fighter has slipped five years to 2018 and the projected...

The cost of maintaining and repairing the fleet of U.S. F-35s has been set at $1 trillion. But facing increasing fiscal pressure, Congress is asking manufacturer Lockheed Martin to find a cheaper way. WSJ's Nathan Hodge reports from Washington. A new Pentagon forecast showing the total cost of owning and operating a fleet of F-35 Joint Strike Fighters topping $1 trillion over more than 50 years has caused a case of sticker shock in Washington. And that price tag doesn't even include the $385 billion the Defense Department will spend to purchase 2,500 of the stealthy planes through 2035. During...

WASHINGTON (AFP) – The cost of building the F-35 fighter jet, set to replace a large part of the US warplane fleet, is "unaffordable" in its current version and must be reviewed, the Pentagon's top acquisition official said Thursday. "Over the lifetime of this program, the decade or so, the per-aircraft cost of the 2,443 aircraft we want has doubled in real terms," said Ashton Carter, the under secretary of defense for acquisition, technology and logistics. "That's our forecast for how much the aircraft's going to cost. "Said differently, that's what it's going to cost if we keep doing what...

Japan may drop F-35 from shortlist of next mainstay fighter -Kyodo May 20 (Reuters) - Japan may drop the F-35 stealth fighter from a shortlist for the country's next generation fighter due to a sharp delay in the plane's development plan, Kyodo agency reported on Friday citing diplomatic and defense sources. The operational test of the radar-evading F-35 -- being developed by Lockheed Martin Corp and Britain, Italy, Netherlands, Turkey, Canada, Australia, Denmark and Norway -- is not expected to begin until 2017 and this would not satisfy Japan's desire to receive delivery of the next fighter by March that...

McCain urges U.S. to think about F-35 alternatives May 19 (Reuters) - U.S. Senator John McCain suggested Thursday that the Defense Department mull possible alternatives to Lockheed Martin Corp's (LMT.N) F-35 fighter program if its rising costs could not be contained. McCain, the top Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee, referred to the program as "incredibly troubled" and a "train wreck." He said Lockheed has done an "abysmal job" at containing cost overruns and urged that the

Navy will not get fleet of US joint strike fighters until 2023, three years after carrier due to enter service. The Ministry of Defence has still not decided how many planes should be assigned to the navy's long-delayed and increasingly expensive aircraft carrier programme, but whatever the number they will not be available for more than a decade, it has emerged. Confusion over the carrier project was compounded on Friday when the MoD said in its "business plan" that the navy will not get its fleet of US joint strike fighters (JSFs) until 2023, three years after HMS Prince of...

F-35A may need mod's to fix range shortfall By Stephen Trimble A new internal report predicts the Lockheed Martin F-35A conventional take-off and landing (CTOL) variant is falling short on a key performance requirement, forcing programme officials to consider a range of aircraft modifications to fix the problem. Combat radius, the maximum distance of an out-bound leg with a full load of weapons and fuel, has dropped to 1,080.4km (584nm) for the F-35A, according to a leaked copy of the 2010 F-35 selection acquisition report (SAR). That falls slightly below the specification for a minimum combat radius of 1,091km, one...

Israel sticks to F-35 despite possible lag to 2018 Israel sticks to F-35 despite possible lag to 2018 09 May 2011 11:30 Source: reuters // Reuters JERUSALEM, May 9 (Reuters) - Israel may get its first F-35 warplanes, seen as a bulwark against arch-enemy Iran, from the United States only in 2018 due to production delays, an Israeli newspaper said on Monday. But the Haaretz daily said Israel is unlikely to buy jets from a rival American manufacturer as a stop-gap. Israel bought around 20 of the radar-evading Lockheed Martin Corp F-35s, along with ancillary equipment, for $2.75 billion last...

Boeing engineers: We should have won F-35 fighter contract Steve Wilhelm Staff Writer Email: swilhelm@bizjournals.com Many Boeing engineers still grumble that Boeing’s design for the joint strike fighter, not Lockheed Martin Corp.’s, should have won the Air Force contract a decade ago to build the aircraft now known as the F-35. Lockheed Martin’s October 2001 win cemented its lead as builder of the nation’s most numerous next-generation fighter. Then touted as a $200 billion contract for 3,000 aircraft, the competition carried even more weight than the just-concluded fight over the Air Force tanker, which Boeing (NYSE: BA) did win. The...

With F-35 delay, IAF looking at purchase of used F-15s By YAAKOV KATZ 13/04/2011 Delivery of Joint Strike Fighter only expected in 2018, air force considers buying used squadron from US, upgrading older jets. Fearing major delays to the Joint Strike Fighter, the IAF is exploring whether to purchase a used squadron of F-15 fighter jets from the US Air Force, as it faces a possible drop in its number of combat aircraft. Israel decided to purchase a squadron of 20 F-35 stealth fifth-generation JSFs, which are made by Lockheed Martin, last year in a massive $2.75 billion deal, to...

Air force eyes 18 more Super Hornets as delays dog our new fighter EXCLUSIVE Brendan Nicholson, Defence editor DEVELOPMENT of the revolutionary Joint Strike Fighter, intended to provide Australia's air defence through this century, is running well behind schedule and the RAAF may need to buy 18 more Super Hornets for $1.5 billion to fill the gap. Australian defence officials head for the US this week for an update from Lockheed Martin Corporation, which is developing the stealthy, multi-role JSF, now named the F-35 Lightning II. The Australian understands they will raise serious concerns about delays in the project and...

The U.S. Defense Department ordered GE and Rolls-Royce to stop production on a second engine for the F-35 joint strike fighter Thursday. The government said they want them to wait until the fiscal 2012 budget is complete and there is a better direction of how the project will look. Hundreds of employees in Indiana are directly tied to the project. Rolls-Royce is the city`s second largest manufacturer behind Eli Lilly. In a statement from the fighter engine team they said they are "disappointed with the U.S. Department of Defense decision which goes against the precedent to continue funding for this...

JSF Cost Predictions Rattle Foreign Customers By David A. Fulghum, Graham Warwick, Robert Wall, Alon Ben-David Washington, Washington, London, Tel Aviv Customers for Lockheed-Martin’s stealthy F-35 Joint Strike Fighter—among them Canada, Israel, Britain and Australia—are shifting their mood from anxiety to paranoia over increasingly unpredictable costs. Foreign analysts now expect JSF prices to significantly exceed even the latest Pentagon estimate, putting government officials in fiscal and political jeopardy as they try to craft a rational purchase plan for the fifth-generation warplane. Adding new concern was congressional testimony by Lt. Gen. Mark Shackleford, military deputy to the assistant secretary of the...

A supremely well-trained pilot fully regains control of his $70 million F-35 joint strike force fighter after a problematic vertical take-off attempt. It appears that the afterburner kicked in while still vectored for vertical takeoff. Lockheed would call this a “software malfunction” and do a little more “regressive testing”. This is a good demonstration of power-to-weight ratio of this aircraft! And talk about stability control. This is an unbelievable piece of flying and the pilot deserves a Medal for saving a 70 Million Dollar Aircraft!

Here at Aero India 2011, Eurofighter has showcased a new naval variant of the Eurofighter Typhoon and has offered it to the Indian Navy. The Eurofighter has also been pitching hard for the Indian Air Force Medium Multi-role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) competition and roped in the Defence Minister of United Kingdom Dr. Liam Fox to strongly push the deal. In a press briefing at the Aero India media center, he spoke highly of the Eurofighter's bid for M-MRCA competition and termed the offering as the best bet on the table. Answering a question of the high price of the Erofighter...

Shoot me, before the pain returns, because the Great Engine War of Words (GEWW) is revving up again. Next week the Pentagon will release its FY2012 budget request, which likely won't contain money for the General Electric/Rolls-Royce F136 alternate engine, and Congress will take up the stalled FY2011 budget, which may or may not end up with money in it for the F136. In a bid to get out ahead, Pratt & Whitney held a media roundtable in Washington today (Feb 10). The first item of news was that Pratt has a "handshake" with the JSF program office on the...

“I think we have succumbed on the F-35 program to adding too many things too quickly,” says a veteran Pentagon program manager. Moreover, the Joint Strike Fighter’s problems have been compounded because the development effort was launched without a complete test plan. Paul Kaminski, speaking as a private citizen, picked out three aircraft programs – the F-16, the F-117 and the F-35, all products of Lockheed Martin – to show how some programs function smoothly, others become delayed and some are repaired along the way. He is CEO of Technovation, Inc., a former under sec. of defense for acquisition and...

Pratt & Whitney has reached an informal agreement with government officials to slash 16% off the total price of the next batch of 37 engines to be ordered for the Lockheed Martin F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. At the same time, the company acknowledges the cost of the overall F135 engine development programme will grow by about $1 billion to support a three-year extension of flight tests and to improve the engine's performance and durability. Company officials also confirm a debate exists within the programme over slightly boosting the thrust of the F-35B short takeoff and vertical landing (STOVL) variant in...

State Secretary for Defence Roger Ingebrigtsen has stressed, during meetings with U.S. officials and executives of Lockheed Martin, the importance of greater predictability and more binding agreements for Norwegian industry in connection with Norway's purchase of the F-35 combat aircraft. “This is a large and very advanced program" Ingebrigtsen said, “and we have experienced delays. I was keen to get a binding response from U.S. authorities when I asked whether we could expect more surprises. The answer to this direct question was an unequivocal no. All stones have been turned over, and confidence in the program is great.” Early in...

India on Wednesday ruled out joining the US in developing the F-35 Lightning II fifth generation stealth fighter aircraft. “We have already entered into a partnership with Russia in developing our own fifth generation fighter aircraft (FGFA),” Defence Minister A K Antony said. “No other country has previously offered such technology to us… There is no question of going back now,” the Defence Minister told reporters during the Aero India 2011 which began in Bangalore on Wednesday. Washington had recently offered New Delhi to join its Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) programme that would have ultimately led India to purchase the...

A good deal of our coverage of JSF has been focused on flight testing, and that is the focus of the latest program changes revealed since the turn of the year. However, there are also problems affecting the JSF production effort. As noted in yesterday's post, briefings by JSF program office leaders (then-director Maj Gen Charles Davis in September 2008 and deputy director Brig Gen CD Moore a year later) set out the planned first flight and delivery dates for the remaining systems development and demonstration (SDD) aircraft. All were missed with one exception - the first flight of BF-2...

Quickstep Holdings Ltd. (North Coogee, Australia) on Feb. 2 announced that it has signed a long-term agreement (LTA) to manufacture composite parts for the international F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) program over the next 20 years. Under the framework established in the LTA, first JSF parts and first cash flow will be delivered in 2012. The LTA was signed in Sydney, Australia, with Northrop Grumman Corp. (Los Angeles, Calif., USA). The LTA is the first of several agreements which will implement the memorandum of understanding (MOU) that was signed in November 2009 with F-35 prime contractor Lockheed Martin...

Details of the revamped F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program are emerging and showing that, despite more than nine years of work, almost six years of challenging development and testing still lie ahead for the Lockheed Martin-led project. Both flight testing and software development have been replanned using industry-standard productivity rates rather than the aggressive—and unachievable—assumptions on which the original program was built. This means many more sorties to refly flight-sciences test points and for regression testing of mission-system software changes. The replan adds 2,000 flights to the program—for a total of 7,800, just 600 of which have been completed—and extends...