Latest F-35s Will Go Directly Into Storage Until Upgrade Woes Ironed Out
https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zon...oes-ironed-out
he Pentagon’s latest plan for the F-35 stealth fighter includes putting a stop on deliveries this summer while it holds out for production jets with the required Technology Refresh 3, or TR-3 hardware to support a range of future improvements.
You can read all about TR-3 and how it is critical to the F-35's future here and here.
The much-delayed TR-3 upgrade is critical to supporting the Block 4 modernization for the Joint Strike Fighter. However, it seems that past woes with concurrency — the combined development and production process in which F-35s are manufactured before all features have been completely tested or vetted — are driving this approach. It remains to be seen what kind of impact it could have on the timeline for the stealth jet, which is the Department of Defense’s most expensive weapon system ever.
An F-35A stealth jet on a test sortie out of Fort Worth, Texas. Lockheed Martin Lockheed Martin
Next month, the Pentagon plans to stop accepting some newly built F-35s as they come off the production line at Lockheed Martin’s Fort Worth facility in Texas, in a development first reported by Breaking Defense. The reason given is the immaturity of the TR-3 hardware. Instead of being delivered to their units, “dozens” of the jets will be stored, temporarily, at Fort Worth. It could take until spring 2024 before issues with TR-3 are ironed out and the jets can finally be handed over.
The first production jets with TR-3 began to take shape in February and these airframes are expected to be completed before the end of July.
The F-35 Joint Program Office (JPO) confirmed to Defense News that the TR-3 delays mean that newly built fighters will be stored in the meantime.
“Starting later this summer, F-35 aircraft coming off the production line with TR-3 hardware will not be accepted until relevant combat capability is validated in accordance with our users’ expectations,” JPO spokesman Russ Goemaere said. “The JPO and Lockheed Martin will ensure these aircraft are safely and securely stored until [acceptance] occurs.”
An F-35A from the test fleet at Edwards Air Force Base, California. U.S. Air Force
While TR-3-equipped F-35s will go into temporary storage, those with the previous TR-2 hardware will continue to be delivered as normal.
Unclear at this point is how many F-35s will be affected.
Defense News reports that Lockheed says it’s too early to say how many F-35s might have to be stored, and the company didn’t comment on the original plan for TR-3 production numbers this year. In total, however, including TR-2 and TR-3 configurations, Lockheed was planning to deliver around 150 F-35s in 2023.
Lockheed on Monday said that it has so far delivered more than 45 F-35s this year, with about 50 more TR-2 F-35s now under construction.
The F-35 production line at Fort Worth. Lockheed Martin
As we have discussed in the past, TR-3 is intended to significantly enhance the F-35’s core processor, memory unit, and associated avionics. With these changes, the jet will be better able to support the multiple new capabilities planned under the upcoming Block 4 modernization program, which will include a brand-new radar. The first F-35 with TR-3 upgrades installed — a specially instrumented flight test aircraft — took to the air for its maiden flight on January 6 this year, at Edwards Air Force Base, California.
Glowing cockpit instrumentation of an F-35. Photo by In Pictures Ltd./Corbis via Getty Images
TR-3 was already delayed, having been planned to be delivered starting in April this year. Under current plans, the U.S. military will only start to receive new F-35s with TR-3 once all development testing is completed.
Once TR-3 is proven, then the F-35 will be ready to undergo Block 4 modernization. Among others, Block 4 will allow the jets to carry a larger variety of precision weapons, will greatly enhance its electronic warfare capability, and provide better target recognition.
In the best-case scenario, TR-3 could be declared ready in December of this year, although it could take until April 2024 — 12 months later than previously expected.
Last year, the Government Accountability Office reported that challenges in the development of TR-3 increased the cost of the overall Block 4 modernization effort by $330 million in 2021 and contributed to program delays. In its announcement of the first flight test sortie with TR-3 in January, the JPO said, “The TR-3 program has overcome technical complexity challenges with hardware and software and is now on track to deliver capability.”
Earlier this year, F-35 program executive officer Lt. Gen. Michael Schmidt told the House Armed Services subcommittee on tactical air and land forces that the development of TR-3’s hardware was lagging behind, with a knock-on effect on the production schedule. Although Lt. Gen. Schmidt said there had been improvements made, including to reliability, software integration remained a problem.
Lt. Gen. Michael Schmidt addresses the House Armed Services subcommittee on tactical air and land forces. His comments about the F-35 program start at around 1:02:00 mark in the runtime.
While a pause on F-35 deliveries may make sense in the long run, in terms of the Pentagon receiving jets that have “relevant combat capability,” it hardly comes as good news for a program that has already seen two production stops in the space of a year.
Last September, F-35 deliveries were placed on hold after officials learned that a component contained materials produced by China, something you can read more about here. The component, a magnet used in F-35 turbomachine pumps, “does not transmit information or harm the integrity of the aircraft and there are no performance, quality, safety, or security risks associated with this issue,” the JPO said in a statement at the time. After a security review, deliveries resumed in October.
Then, last December, deliveries came to a halt after pre-delivery acceptance flights were paused. This was in response to a December 15 accident at Fort Worth involving a pre-delivery F-35B, later found to be the result of an engine vibration problem. Deliveries resumed again after a fix was introduced.
Now, as it stands, it’s unclear how many F-35s will be affected by the latest pause in deliveries. In the best-case scenario, based on Lockheed’s estimation that TR-3 testing could be complete in December this year, that will leave a portion of the jets in storage for at least around five months.
In the more pessimistic scenario, based on the JPO’s expectation that TR-3 might not be ready until next April, then some of the stealth jets will be stored for around nine months.
Either way, it’s a a major setback based on the previous plans of having TR-3-equipped jets delivered to the customer in April 2023.
There could also be further setbacks head.
In March this year, senior U.S. military officials discussed the F135 engine’s limitations while outlining a plan to pursue an Engine Core Upgrade (ECU) effort before members of a subcommittee of the House Armed Services Committee.
The U.S. military sees planned engine upgrades for all the variants of the F-35 as critical since the Pratt & Whitney F135 turbofans that power all of the aircraft have been “under spec since the beginning,” according to the JPO. This means the engines are routinely operated at higher-than-expected temperatures, leading to an increased maintenance and logistics burden, and reducing the F-35’s overall readiness rates.
F135 engines. Pratt & Whitney
The Engine Core Upgrade is of particular relevance for TR-3 and Block 4, as well. Both these efforts demand additional electrical power and have increased cooling needs, something that the ECU is intended to address via its power and thermal management system (PTMS) improvements.
In a report last month on the F-35’s cost growth and engine modernization, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) stated that “The program assessed some engine and cooling improvement options, but it has not fully defined the requirements for how much future cooling the aircraft will need.” The report added that the Pentagon “hasn’t taken some important steps, such as fully assessing the costs and technical risks of the different [engine and cooling system] options.”
The GAO recommended that “Congress should consider directing the F-35 program to manage the engine modernization as a separate program. GAO added this matter for Congress because [the Department of Defense] has not committed to a separate engine program consistent with GAO’s recommendation.”
Most recently, it emerged that the U.S. Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps may all end up choosing different cooling upgrades for their F-35s after a plan emerged under which they would draft their own requirements. That would inevitably drive up costs and likely increase the potential for further delays.
So, while the status of the Engine Core Upgrade is critical for the F-35 in general, delays with it could have a very significant impact on the already delayed TR-3 program, as well as the Block 4 modernization that, in turn, relies upon it.
Ultimately, ensuring the F-35 has an engine that fulfills performance parameters, especially when demands for electronic power and cooling are growing, could even end up being a bigger issue than the latest delivery pause, due to come into effect this summer.
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Thailand air force says U.S. has denied request to buy F-35 jets
A F-35A fighter aircraft rolls on a tarmac at the Swiss Air Force base in Emmen
BANGKOK (Reuters) - The United States has declined to sell its F-35 stealth fighter jets to Thailand over issues with training and technical requirements, the Southeast Asian country's air force said on Thursday.
Thailand, which was designated a Major Non-NATO Ally by the United States in 2003, had last year set aside a 13.8 billion baht ($407.68 million) budget for new jets to replace its aging, mostly U.S.-made F-5 and F-16 fighters.
It identified up to eight Lockheed Martin F-35A jets as its target.
But sale of the fifth-generation fighters was subject to conditions that included time constraints, technical requirements and maintenance compatibility and the United States was therefore unable to offer the sale, air force spokesperson Air Chief Marshall Prapas Sornchaidee said in a statement.
The F-35 is one of the world's most advanced fighter aircraft and is considered a sensitive export sold only to the United States' closest allies, which in the Indo-Pacific includes Australia, Japan, South Korea and Singapore.
Thailand currently has 12 JAS-39 Gripen fighter jets made by Sweden's Saab in addition to its U.S.-made models, many of which have been in operation for decades.
Thailand's military has used U.S. technology going back to the Vietnam War era, when it hosted U.S. air force and navy personnel at its bases. Thailand has for many years hosted annual "Cobra Gold" training exercises with the United States.
Those warm ties have, however, been strained by the Thai military's coups against elected governments in 2006 and 2014, and concerns about overtures by army-backed governments towards rival power China.
Prapas said the air force would still replace its F-16 jets and the United States had offered the upgraded F-15 and F-16s models, which could be transferred faster.
($1 = 33.8500 baht)
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Haven't even touched tools yet!? Maybe I should enlist as I have touched tools, routinely rebuild car engines, suspensions, brake systems, ignition systems, and fabricated new panels for a TBM Avenger to rivet in. Hell, I am way ahead of those guys only I am not living in Utah.Leave a comment:
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In Utah, one airman’s trashed F-35 is another’s training aid
HILL AIR FORCE BASE, Utah—Call it the “Island of Misfit Toys.”
Tucked away in a beige, concrete workshop at the 388th Maintenance Group here, the remnants of trashed F-35 Lightning II fighter jets are getting a second wind.
Airmen are turning unflyable aircraft into training assets for F-35 maintainers who would otherwise have to learn those lessons on an operational jet or a computer. The master sergeant in charge argues it’s saving the Air Force millions of dollars — and it’s fun, too.
A reassembled F-35A airframe is hoisted during a new crash recovery training course Sept. 13, 2022, at Hill Air Force Base, Utah. The course included 29 maintainers from across the U.S. and partner nations' F-35 programs.
Salvaging planes has become a pet project for Master Sgt. Andrew Wilkow, a maintainer with the 372nd Training Squadron. Rehabbing the wrecks is one of his full-time jobs, after a career of repairing battle damage and overhauling jets at maintenance depots.
Right now, he’s working on the beaten-up cockpit of a Marine Corps F-35B that crashed near Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort, South Carolina, in 2018. A Pratt & Whitney F135 engine that was salvaged from a 2020 mishap at Eglin AFB, Florida, sits nearby.
The idea started in 2020, when Wilkow helped the F-35 Joint Program Office reattach a jet’s wings — a process for which the program had no blueprint. That aircraft caught fire upon takeoff at Eglin in 2014.
Hill figured out a way to stick the wings back on, and later used the fuselage to train F-35 crew chiefs and maintainers in repairing combat damage. Then an acquaintance at the program office wanted to repay the favor.
“[He] said, ‘Hey, I’ve got some crashed jet parts. Do you want those?’” Wilkow said. “That turned into … ‘Well, what can’t I have?’”
Wilkow has taken in carcasses from three other F-35s since then.
After an F-35A from Luke AFB, Arizona, caught fire in 2016, Wilkow had it sawed in half so maintainers could tinker with the inside of a real jet. The F135 engine from the 2020 Eglin mishap, and the 25 mm GAU-22/A four-barrel Gatling gun from the same plane, will be static displays where airmen can learn how to inspect the hardware.
Teaching airmen to use a borescope, a tool that lets mechanics look through tiny holes, is particularly important for catching internal troubles that could cause an engine to malfunction.
The Marine Corps cockpit should be ready in November to teach people about landing gears, avionics and more, Wilkow said. That process involves steps like removing contaminants, softening sharp edges, fabricating new panels and other broken components, and attaching a new canopy.
He plans to install a computer into the cockpit so airmen can see the same training cues as they would get at a desk, without sending the jet back to a private company. Dumpster diving turns up other parts that can come in handy for free.
“These airplanes cost so much money [that] with a mishap, it’s a loss,” he said. “But for maintenance, it doesn’t have to be. … We can turn something that was garbage into something that you never had.”
Maintainers typically learn about their aircraft using operational jets, which means units have to choose between keeping planes on the ground or delaying their own training.
And plenty is off-limits for those planes: You can’t “lift an operational jet with a crane, collapse the front landing gear and then set the nose of the aircraft on the ground without significant risk of damaging it,” Wilkow said in a release last year.
Those involved in refurbishing the F-35s hope they’ll become a key part of new coursework to train airmen faster, particularly as the Air Force looks to merge some maintenance specialties and rebuild that workforce.
An exodus of more experienced mechanics led to thousands of vacant repair jobs, which the Air Force has fought to refill. Now, Wilkow hopes his salvaged planes can help get younger technicians up to speed.
“The [Ogden Air Logistics Complex] depot itself is having a hard time with keeping their people — Northrop Grumman down the street is paying more,” he said. “With new people coming in, not having a lot of experience … this is to help everyone.”
The salvaged planes can build trainees’ confidence and make them more comfortable at work, said Tech. Sgt. Kevin Browning, who works on the jet’s stealth features with the 388th Maintenance Squadron.
“With the new generation of airmen, most of them haven’t even touched tools before,” he said. “We have to charge them with drilling holes in a $120 million airplane. You want to make the mistake here, and learn here, before you go out and exercise that ability.”
They also serve to educate civilian employees and contractors who may only have experience repairing fourth-generation aircraft. More advanced aircraft like the F-35, F-22 Raptor and B-2 Spirit require a more precise hand than their earlier counterparts, Browning said.
“[On] B-52s, if it’s not coming off, you hit it harder,” he said. “You don’t do that on an F-35. Everything’s pieced together perfectly.”
A salvaged F-35A fuselage sits in two sections after being cut in half with the volunteer help of a civilian saw manufacturing company, May 4, 2022, at Hill Air Force Base, Utah. The aircraft was condemned after an accident and is currently being transformed into sectional training aids by the 372nd Training Squadron, Detachment 3, for use during instruction of F-35 maintainers.
Wilkow said the project can save the Air Force tens of millions of dollars on buying new training systems from F-35 manufacturer Lockheed Martin.
Progress can be slow, in part because the people and equipment needed to get the job done are in short supply. But Wilkow said it’s worth it.
“When the Air Force spends so much money on the aircraft, maintenance doesn’t get the fancy simulators to train on,” he said. “It’s a neat opportunity for us to get nice, new toys — even if they’re garbage.”
His advice to other airmen who want to do the same: Build a good plan, communicate it well and follow through.
“This takes a lot of creativity and innovation, thinking outside the box,” he said. “If you have something good, stick with it.”
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Well hot damn, THAT'S how it's supposed to be done!Leave a comment:
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This mishap was the result of pilot error. The mishap pilot (MP) attempted an expedited recovery breaking overhead the carrier, an approved and common maneuver, but the MP had never performed this maneuver before and it reduced the amount of time to configure the aircraft and conduct landing checks. Asa resultof the compressed timeline and the MP's lack of familiarity with the maneuver, the MP lost situational awareness and failed to complete his landing checklist. Specifically, the MP remained in manual mode when he should have been (and thought he was) in an automated command mode designed to reduce pilot workload during landings.Originally posted by Monash View Post
Before the Mishap Flight (MF), the MP had never initiated an expedited recovery from overhead the ship. On 24 January, it was his first attempt. The MP was a previous Top-5 Nugget and a Top-10 ball-flyer within CVW-2, indicating that his landing performance at the ship had been exceptional for a first-tour junior officer (JO). [Encl 7, 24] 80.
The MP discussed the proper execution of an expedited recovery with other members of his squadron. The MP wanted to try a “benign first attempt” at breaking overhead the ship. The MP explained that other JOs had performed the maneuver overhead the ship and he wanted to attempt it before the end of deployment. The MP described hearing from CVW-2 LSOs that an expedited recovery can reduce open deck times, but he did not feel pressure to perform an expedited recovery on 24 January from the CVW-2 LSOs or anyone else.
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Unlike other mishaps this was an incredibly expensive mishap that the Navy says is close to $120 million. According to Ward this pilot will not be flying again for the Navy.Leave a comment:
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Out of curiosity does this kind of incident normally nix a navy pilots career?Leave a comment:
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I wonder if said pilot had much Hornet sticktime or was a Nugget straight out of Flight School to the Fleet and F-35s.Originally posted by tbm3fan View PostLeave a comment:
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Final report of that F-35 ramp strike. Pilot error.
https://s3.documentcloud.org/documen...edacted-v2.pdfLeave a comment:
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Another hurdle to the F=35 has been overcome.
https://www.defensenews.com/air/2023...rs-deliveries/
Fix coming for F-35 engine problem that froze fighters’ deliveries
By Stephen Losey
Feb 10, 09:43 AM
WASHINGTON — The military and manufacturers of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter have found a potential solution to the engine troubles that halted deliveries of the jet for nearly two months, a key lawmaker told Defense News on Thursday.
The solution could be available later this month, paving the way for deliveries of the F-35 to resume, said Rep. Rob Wittman, R-Va., who chairs the House Armed Services Committee’s tactical air and land forces panel.
During an interview in his Capitol Hill office, Wittman said engineers identified vibration issues in the fighters’ Pratt & Whitney-made F135 engines as the source of the problem that froze F-35 acceptance flights and subsequent deliveries.
“The good news is the Air Force and the contractor, Lockheed [Martin, which builds the F-35], did their due diligence to discover what the issues were there, and to make sure they gathered the data to make sure they put in place a proper solution,” said Wittman, noting he was briefed on the issue Wednesday by F-35 Program Executive Officer Lt. Gen. Michael Schmidt. “I’m very confident that they have properly identified the problem, and that their solution set that they’re going to put in place will solve the problem. They’re doing the adequate testing to make sure that their solution does indeed avoid this particular situation in the future.”
Wittman’s office later clarified that he intended to refer to engine manufacturer Pratt & Whitney as the contractor that did its due diligence.
Wittman said the solution “should be in hand any day now.” Asked if that meant later in February, he replied: “That’s my understanding.”
Pratt & Whitney confirmed in a statement to Defense News the development of a near-term solution meant to allow the company to resume delivering F135 engines to F-35 manufacturer Lockheed Martin by the end of this month.
“After thorough review, we can confidently say there were no quality issues with the [engine] fuel tube that fractured,” said Jen Latka, vice president of the F135 program for Pratt & Whitney. “We are dealing with a rare systems phenomenon involving harmonic resonance.
“We have developed a near-term remedy that allows the fleet to fly safely, and we expect that F135 engine deliveries could resume before the end of the month.”
When asked for comment, the F-35 Joint Program Office referred Defense News to Pratt & Whitney’s statement. Lockheed Martin referred questions to the JPO. It is unclear when acceptance flights will resume. Pratt & Whitney did not provide details of the developed fix.
Lockheed halted acceptance flights of new fighters after a Dec. 15 mishap involving a newly built F-35B in Fort Worth, Texas. Acceptance flights are required to ensure new fighters are working as intended before they are delivered to the government. The pause in those flights had the effect of also stopping deliveries.
Lockheed has since continued to build and store new F-35s, primarily at its main factory in Fort Worth.
Video of the Dec. 15 mishap showed the fighter hovering near the ground before descending, bouncing, tipping forward until its nose and a wing touched the ground, and starting to spin around. Its Air Force pilot, who was performing a quality check for the Defense Contract Management Agency, then safely ejected.
A source familiar with the program told Defense News in December that initial assessments showed a high-pressure fuel tube in the engine of the F-35B had failed. This prompted the JPO to update its safety risk assessments.
And on Dec. 27, delivery of new F135 engines was paused after what the JPO called a “mutual agreement” involving itself, DCMA, and Pratt & Whitney, while the investigation into the mishap continued.
Wittman confirmed “there was a problem with the high-pressure fuel-delivery system.”
Wittman said the solution will involve a “combination of things” to dampen vibrations in the engine, which he called “a very confined ... dynamic environment,” though he was unable to detail the solution.
But figuring out the solution is only the first step, Wittman noted. The contractors involved have to set up a manufacturing process for the fixes, and then go back and install them in the F-35s that Lockheed has built since mid-December. The contractor now has 17 F-35s completed and awaiting acceptance flights.
This solution also needs to be built into the production line for new fighters, Wittman said.
“I believe that the Air Force and Lockheed have the solution set in hand, which is the key,” he explained. “Then … how do they incorporate that into existing aircraft and aircraft that are on the assembly line now?”
Time is running out to fix the problem and keep F-35 production going, Wittman added. Lockheed has continued building new F-35s using the stock of F135 engines it already had on hand before the December halt in engine deliveries.
Lockheed still has some engines in reserve to continue building fighters, Wittman said, but not many.
“It’s my understanding … that the number of those engines now is very small,” he told Defense News. “So the longer this goes on, you potentially could be at a point where the engine supply is depleted, and then it could impact production.”
Wittman said all the parties involved in the F-35 are considering factors, such as remaining engine availability, as they deal with the problem.Leave a comment:
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Dude, I spent 7 years shutting down multiple brigades at a time for anything supply or maintenance related for 2 to 3 weeks at a time. We were replacing stovepipe supply, maintenance, financial and property accountability SW systems with a single program. Hundred of soldiers and civilians trained in 2 weeks. All date migrated into the new system. It can be done but needs a LOT of expertise & planning.Originally posted by jlvfr View PostLeave a comment:
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In my office I still use a DOS program to track activity and it does it fine. The company that created it later moved onto a windows application and contacted everyone who was using their DOS program. They could translate your info over onto the new program in 15 minutes. They wanted $15,000 to do that and $500 yearly fee now over my paid inexpensive program. I told the VP "drop dead."Originally posted by jlvfr View PostLeave a comment:
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It's extremely dificult to replace IT systems on large scale applications, specially in critical roles, and even more specially if whatever is using said systems cannot stop operating, or can do so only for very short periods. Same happens in civilian life. There are large banks and insurance companies that, while the front end migh use the latest windows or IOS, the backend may be running languages and database models that are decades old. Why? Because replacing them would be a nightmare. So we go back to the old "if it works don't fix it"... my own company has at least 2 softwares that are 20+ years old and we have no plans to replace them.Originally posted by Gun Grape View PostLeave a comment:
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