JSF

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Non sarà a Parigi .....

The Lockheed Martin F-35 will skip an appearance in June at the Paris air show, the joint programme office confirms.
With the event less than two months away, the JPO has not received an invitation to attend and is not aware of any F-35 participation in the show, a JPO spokesman tells FlightGlobal.
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Unlike the UK, France is not planning on buying any variant of the F-35 from the US.

Fonte: FlightGlobal ..... "F-35 will not attend Paris Air Show" .....

Inoltre .....

No stealth aircraft has attended or flown over the Paris air show since the F-117’s flight in 1991.
In 2009, the US Air Force pulled a planned F-22 flight, citing availability of the aircraft.

E qui Flight sbaglia clamorosamente ..... in quanto, nel 1995, un bombardiere stealth B-2 fece una brevissima apparizione a Le Bourget .....

..... http://www.nytimes.com/1995/06/12/busin ... -show.html .....

..... http://www.nytimes.com/1995/06/12/busin ... -show.html .....
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Progressi con ALIS .....

Lockheed Martin announced Wednesday that the newest version of its Autonomic Logistics Information System, or ALIS, which the company calls “the IT backbone of the F-35,” has been approved for installation on Air Force and Navy F-35s.
Another version of ALIS, to be fielded by early 2018, will be coming before the F-35 can close out the system design and development phase, according to Lockheed.
The completion of version 2.02 means that “for the first time, the entire F-35 from tip to tail, including the propulsion system, is integrated within ALIS,” vice president of F-35 logistics Reeves Valentine told reporters on a conference call.

Fonte: AFA ..... "ALIS 2.02 Ready to Go" .....

LM ..... "Lockheed Martin Delivers New Capabilities for F-35 Logistics System" .....
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Rapporto del GAO ..... il JPO non è d'accordo .....

The F-35 Joint Program Office disputes several of the conclusions in the Government Accountability Office’s second annual assessment of the project, released Monday.
The GAO said testing the F-35’s 3F software version could slip as much as a year, incurring extra costs of up to $1.7 billion as Navy operational service and full-rate production of all variants would be delayed.
The GAO also recommended delaying the Block IV F-35 upgrade program until the 3F is thoroughly tested.
The JPO said it didn’t concur with GAO’s prediction that 3F testing could be a year late, saying “so far, the testing remains on track to complete in February 2018,” and estimates of completion did indeed take into account “historical data,” which the GAO said the JPO didn’t do.

Fonte: AFA ..... "F-35 JPO Begs to Differ with GAO" .....
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Continua il 'Giro d'Europa' degli F-35A dell' USAF .....

Dopo la breve visita in Estonia .....

..... http://www.airforcemag.com/Features/Pag ... tonia.aspx .....

..... ora tocca alla Bulgaria .....

..... https://www.defense.gov/News/Article/Ar ... -bulgaria/ .....
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Anche gli F-35A della Eglin AFB hanno preso parte all' Exercise Atlantic Trident 2017 ..... importante evento addestrativo congiunto fra USAF, RAF e Armée de l' Air .....

The Air Force’s fifth generation F-22s and F-35s flew alongside the best British and French fighters for the first time in a large-scale exercise here, but the aircraft is not the focus of the event.
For USAF commanders planning and flying regularly in Exercise Atlantic Trident 2017, the pilots and maintainers themselves are the important focus of the trilateral exercise.
“There’s been a lot of interest in the machines. Which airplane is better? What are their capabilities? How are you using them?” Col. Peter Fesler, commander of Langley’s 1st Fighter Wing, told Air Force Magazine on April 27 as the exercise wound down.
“The thing I think is particularly interesting, the man in the machine matters tremendously. You can have the most capable aircraft in the world, but with a pilot who can’t perform, he will be beat. That’s why training matters, it’s why we have to do things like [this exercise]. You can’t just buy airpower.”

Fonte: AFA ..... "Trilateral, Cross-Generation Integration at Langley" .....

Armée de l'Air ..... "«Atlantic Trident» 2017 : le combat aérien a commencé" .....
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A proposito dell' eventuale presenza del Lightning II al prossimo Salone di Parigi ..... la vicenda si sta trasformando in una commedia degli equivoci .....

While the F-35 won’t be making an appearance at the Paris Air Show this year, the French aerospace organization planning the event did extend an invitation to the U.S. government in the hopes of getting the joint strike fighter to fly.
In a letter dated Sept. 16, 2016, SIAE — the organization that puts together the Paris Air Show — made a formal request for the United States to conduct a flying demonstration of the F-35 and V-22 during the event this June.
Defense News obtained a copy of the invitation, which was sent to Jane Hartley, the former U.S. ambassador to France.
The letter casts doubt on early reports, including one by Defense News, that suggested that the French government was not interested in hosting an F-35 demonstration.
Those reports were based on statements by the F-35 joint program executive office, which had no knowledge of an invitation.
Instead, SIAE spends the majority of the letter highlighting reasons for the U.S. government to send the plane.

Fonte: DefenseNews ..... "Paris Air Show organizers invited US F-35s to conduct flight demos" .....

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ALIS 2.0.2 ..... fra un mese e mezzo anche per i Marines .....

After months of delays, the newest iteration of the F-35’s logistics system is finally ready to be installed on the aircraft, manufacturer Lockheed Martin announced Wednesday.
So far, the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Navy have approved the most recent version of the Autonomic Logistics Information System, or ALIS, a core piece of F-35 infrastructure that enables mission planning, gives step-by-step maintenance instructions and allows personnel to order spare parts, among other functions.
The U.S. Marine Corps, however, is about six weeks away from being able to approve the new ALIS on its short takeoff and landing F-35 variant, the company said.

Fonte: DefenseNews ..... "F-35 logistics system all set for US Air Force and Navy, not yet for Marines" .....
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A margine dell' esercitazione Atlantic Trident 2017 ..... un 'report' di The Aviationist .....

..... "Atlantic Trident 17 brought together in type and capability the most formidable combination of fighter aircraft ever assembled" .....

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LM riceve il contratto per il Lotto 12 ed anticipi sulle forniture per i successivi 13 e 14 .....

Lockheed Martin Corp., Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co., Fort Worth, Texas, is being awarded a not-to-exceed $1,377,002,000 advance acquisition contract for long-lead time materials, parts, components, and effort for 130 low-rate initial production Lot 12 F-35 Lightning II aircraft for the Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps, non-U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) participants, and foreign military sales customers.
In addition this contract provides long-lead time materials, parts, components, and effort for 110 Lot 13 and 14 F-35 Lightning II aircraft for the non-U.S. DoD participants and foreign military sales customers.
Work will be performed in Fort Worth, Texas (30 percent); El Segundo, California (25 percent); Warton, United Kingdom (20 percent); Orlando, Florida (10 percent); Nashua, New Hampshire (5 percent); Nagoya, Japan (5 percent); and Baltimore, Maryland (5 percent), and is expected to be completed in December 2018.
Fiscal 2017 aircraft procurement (Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps); non-U.S. DoD participant; and foreign military sales funds in the amount of $1,377,002,000 are being obligated at time of award, none of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year.
This order combines purchases for the Air Force ($315,500,000; 23 percent); Marine Corps ($128,925,000; 9 percent); Navy ($43,509,000; 3 percent); non-U.S. DoD participant ($524,446,000; 38 percent), and foreign military sales customers ($364,622,000; 27 percent).
This contract was not competitively procured pursuant to Federal Acquisition Regulation 6.302-1.
The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity (N00019-17-C-0001).

Fonte: US DoD ..... https://www.defense.gov/News/Contracts/ ... e/1167080/ .....

A quanto pare non si prevede assegnazione di fondi destinati alla produzione in Italia .....
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Israele sta spingendo per ottenere la manutenzione e la revisione dei motori dei propri F-35I ..... e non solo per quelli .....

Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) wants to use its facilities to maintain and overhaul the Pratt & Whitney F135 engines used by the Israeli air force's Lockheed Martin F-35s.
Yosi Melamed, general manager of IAI's Bedek group subsidiary, believes its engine division is the right place to maintain and overhaul F135 engines, "at first for the Israeli air force, but not only".

Fonte: FlightGlobal ..... "IAI targets engine support work on F-35" .....

Comincio ad avere l'impressione che stiano esagerando ..... pur comprendendo le ragioni di sicurezza che stanno loro tanto a cuore .....
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Un alto funzionario di LM parla del peso della partecipazione israeliana ..... mentre riaffiora l' interesse per il possibile acquisto di un certo numero di F-35B .....

“There’s a part of Israel in every F-35 that’s ever been built,” a Lockheed Martin senior executive told a gathering of air power professionals here Thursday.
Speaking at an annual event of Israel Defense and the Fisher Institute for Air and Space Strategic Studies, retired U.S. Air Force Gen. Gary North, vice president for customer requirements at Lockheed Martin Aeronautics, said the firm has already contracted more than $1 billion worth of structures, subsystems and components with Israeli industry.
And over the lifetime of the program, assuming Israel concludes follow-on buys for the full 75 planes authorized by the U.S. government, Israeli content in the multinational program is expected to exceed $4 billion, he said.

Fonte: DefenseNews ..... " Lockheed VP: 'There’s a part of Israel in every F-35' " .....
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Ammiragli e generali presenziano a Cameri al roll-out del primo F-35B assemblato in Italia .....



..... "Concluso a Cameri l’assemblaggio del primo JSF STOVL italiano" .....
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FACO Cameri ..... FlightGlobal fornisce alcuni dati sulla produzione .....

..... "First Italian F-35B rolls off Cameri line" .....

Ulteriori dati da un comunicato di LM ..... "First Italian-Built F-35B 'Rolls Out' of Cameri Production Facility" .....

..... dal quale emerge che .....

The Cameri FACO has the only F-35B production capability outside the United States and is programmed to produce a total of 30 Italian F-35Bs and 60 Italian F-35As, along with 29 F-35As for the Royal Netherlands Air Force, and retains the capacity to deliver to other European partners in the future.

Sarebbe interessante capire a quali 'partners' si stanno riferendo .....
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Salone di Parigi ..... alla fine .....dopo un' infinità di tergiversazioni ..... ci sarà .....

In a rapid reversal, the US Air Force plans to take the stealthy Lockheed Martin F-35 to the Paris Air Show after all.
Only two weeks after the Joint Programme Office declared the F-35 would not make a debut appearance at the international marketing event, the air force announced on 6 May that the stealthy strike fighter will participate in the Paris air show next month.

Fonte: FlightGlobal ..... "F-35 to make Paris air show debut" .....

AFA ..... "F-35As to Return to Europe for Paris Air Show" .....

DefenseNews ..... "Scratch that — the F-35A will go to Paris Air Show after all" .....
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Il piccolo 'Giro d'Europa' degli F-35A dell' USAF si è concluso ..... gli aerei sono rientrati alla base .....

Eight F-35A Lightning IIs from the 34th Fighter Squadron, along with supporting units and equipment from Hill Air Force Base, Utah, completed the first F-35A training deployment to Europe, May 7, 2017.
While at Royal Air Force Lakenheath, the squadron flew 76 sorties and tallied more than 154 flying hours alongside F-15s from the 48th Fighter Wing.

Fonte: AFRC ..... "F-35 complete first European training deployment" .....
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DefenseNews scopre il Movimento 5 Stelle ..... conferendo così alle sue posizioni contrarie al Lightning II risonanza internazionale .....

Italy’s anti-establishment Five Star Movement, the political party vying for top spot in polls ahead of elections due by next year, has committed to scrapping the F-35 program if it takes office.
“There will be no ifs or buts about leaving the F-35 program,” said Tatiana Basilio, a Five Star member of the Italian parliament during a presentation of the party’s defense manifesto on Thursday.

L'articolo ..... "Italy's anti-establishment Five Star party would scrap F-35 program" .....

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L' Air Force comunica che il problema relativo al peso dei piloti è stato finalmente superato .....

..... http://www.af.mil/News/Article-Display/ ... trictions/ .....

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Secondo l' AFA ... a Parigi si esibiranno due F-35A provenienti da reparti dell' USAF ... ma a pilotarli sarà personale di LM .....

..... http://www.airforcemag.com/DRArchive/Pa ... Paris.aspx .....

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La Germania si muove ..... ma, per ora, soltanto a livello informativo .....

The German Air Force this month sent the U.S. military a written request for classified data on the Lockheed Martin Corp F-35 fighter jet as it gears up to replace its current fleet of fighter jets from 2025 to 2035.
The letter, sent by the Air Force's planning command and seen by Reuters, makes clear that the German government has not yet authorized a procurement program and is not committed to any particular aircraft to replace its current warplanes.
It said the defense ministry would carry out "an in-depth evaluation of market available solutions, including the F-35, later this year," with a formal "letter of request" to be issued in coming months.

Fonte: Reuters ..... "Germany asks U.S. for classified briefing on Lockheed's F-35 fighter" .....
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Dalla trasferta in Europa ..... risultati lusinghieri .....

F-35As performed at a higher mission capable rate than its fourth generation counterparts during the type’s first deployment to Europe, despite dealing with a small amount of maintenance issues.
Eight F-35As and about 200 airmen from Hill AFB, Utah, deployed to RAF Lakenheath, England, last month before returning home on May 7.
During the deployment, the aircraft flew 76 sorties and more than 154 flying hours.
The F-35As maintained an 87.5 percent mission capable rate for the deployment, with four canceled sorties because of maintenance issues, said Col. David Lyons, commander of the 388th Fighter Wing at Hill.
For comparison, Hill F-16s currently deployed to Spain have a 75 percent mission capable rate, Lyons said.

Fonte: AFA ..... "F-35As Stay Healthy in Europe" .....
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Le discese ardite ..... e le risalite .....

The price of the F-35A - the Air Force version - will drop below $79 million within the next three years, but just a few years later, it will start going up again, outgoing program director Lt. Gen. Christopher Bogdan said in an exit interview with Air Force Magazine.
The price of the F-35 has come down, lot after lot, for five years.
The $79 million price - in 2020 dollars - includes an engine and program fee, he said, and is for the “baseline” jet equipped with the 3F software, sensor, and weapons suite.
However, “there’s a caveat” with that number, Bogdan noted.
That price is “based on a particular ramp rate and quantity profile,” and if the production rate of the F-35 is slowed, the $79 million figure will “take longer” to get to.
“Every time you take airplanes out,” it will delay the most efficient rate, he said.
Looking ahead, though, as a series of substantive upgrades begin to appear in production, “they’re going to cause the airplane to cost more,” he acknowledged.
A 2020 airplane, he said, lacks the “follow-on modernization and enhancements that will come in the 2022-2028 timeframe, and those enhancements are going to cost money.

Fonte: AFA ..... "F-35 Price Will Start Rising Again in About 2022" .....
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Bye-bye .....

Lt. Gen. Christopher Bogdan steps down from leadership of the F-35 program Thursday, after a tour of duty lasting five years.
Even service Chiefs of Staff serve, at most, four years, so how did he manage it?
In an exclusive exit interview with Air Force Magazine, Bogdan explained that a long-serving director was essential to both change the program’s corrosive culture, and to show competitive forces that they couldn’t “wait out” the PEO.

Fonte: AFA ..... "Bogdan Retires After Five Years at Helm of F-35 Program" .....
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P&W F135 ..... l' azienda annuncia le possibili migliorie .....

FlightGlobal ..... "Proposed F-35 engine upgrade validates performance promises" .....

P&W ..... "Pratt & Whitney Validates Growth Option for F135 Engine" .....

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Nel momento in cui la FACO di Nagoya scodella il primo F-35A assemblato in Giappone .....

FlightGlobal ..... "Mitsubishi rolls out first Japanese-built F-35" .....

f35.com ..... "First Japanese-Built F-35A Officially Unveiled at Nagoya Facility" .....

..... comincia a circolare la voce che la Spagna sia ormai definitivamente orientata all' acquisto di un certo numero di F-35 .....

occhidellaguerra.it ..... "La Spagna acquista F-35 e riafferma l’alleanza con Washington" .....
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A terra .....

The Air Force on Friday temporarily grounded F-35As at Luke AFB, Ariz., after five separate incidents where pilots reported hypoxia-like incidents.
Since May 2, five pilots assigned to the base have reported “physiological incidents while flying,” according to an Air Force statement released Friday afternoon.
Each time, the F-35A’s backup oxygen system operated as designed, and the pilot was able to follow procedures and land the aircraft.

Fonte: AFA ..... "USAF Temporarily Grounds F-35As at Luke After Hypoxia-Like Incidents" .....

USAF ..... "Luke AFB temporarily cancels F-35A local flying ops" ......

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Una sosta forzata che sta durando più del previsto ...

F-35 flight operations at Luke Air Force Base, Arizona, will continue to be suspended as analysts investigate five incidents where pilots suffered hypoxia-like symptoms, a spokeswoman for the base said Monday.
Since May 2, five 56th Fighter Wing pilots have reported symptoms of oxygen deprivation while flying the U.S. Air Force version of the joint strike fighter, including two incidents that occurred last week.
In all cases, the backup oxygen systems kicked in and pilots were able to safely land the plane, but training has ground to a halt to allow a team from the F-35 Joint Program Office, or JPO, to study the events.
Maj. Rebecca Heyse, spokeswoman for the 56th Fighter Wing, said a JPO team of engineers, maintainers and aeromedical specialists arrived on base Sunday and are currently narrowing down potential causes for the incidents.
The hope is to identify the root cause over the next couple days, but no date has been set as this time for a tentative resumption of operations, she told Defense News.

Fonte: DefenseNews ..... "Luke Air Force Base extends cancellation of F-35 flight operations" .....
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Imminente Salone di Parigi ..... due F-35A dell' USAF sono già arrivati a Le Bourget .....

Two F-35As safely landed in France on Tuesday, just days ahead of the jet’s debut at Paris Air Show next week.
The U.S. aircraft took off from Hill Air Force Base in Utah earlier Tuesday and landed at Le Bourget Airport, the site of the air show, on Tuesday evening, Air Force spokesman Capt. Mark Graff told Defense News.
Two pilots from Eglin Air Force Base in Florida operated the aircraft during the transatlantic flight.
Although the U.S. Air Force’s variant of the joint strike fighter has participated in other air shows, the demonstrations in Paris will be the first opportunity for international audiences to see the F-35’s aerodynamic capabilities, including acrobatic and high G-force maneuvers on par with what viewers see during performances of the Blue Angels and Thunderbirds, Graff said.

Fonte: DefenseNews ..... "Countdown to Paris Air Show begins as F-35 arrives in France" .....
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Volo di prova a Le Bourget .....

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F-35A a Parigi ..... un commento di FlightGlobal ..... "PARIS: F-35 goes from zero to hero" .....

Secondo volo di familiarizzazione a Le Bourget .....

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Luke AFB ..... nonostante il mistero persista ..... gli F-35A dell' USAF torneranno presto a volare .....

After engineers, physicians, pilots, and maintainers wracked their brains for a week, the cause of five physiological incidents among F-35A pilots at Luke AFB, Ariz., remains a mystery.
Even so, an “initial” return to flight status is contemplated as early as the afternoon of June 20, 56th Fighter Wing commander Brig. Gen. Brook Leonard told reporters Friday via teleconference from Luke.
Leonard said there was no “root cause” identified among the five incidents, which occurred over five weeks and caused F-35 flying to be halted at Luke, nor were there any “common threads” pointing clearly to a specific problem.
Flying was stopped because “the risk snowball was building,” he said.

Fonte: AFA ..... "While F-35 Incidents Still Mysterious, Return to Flight Expected Soon" .....
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Lo può fare .....

In its debut flight at the Paris Air Show, the U.S. Air Force and Lockheed Martin want to obliterate the idea that the F-35 can’t dogfight.
In part, because of an internal U.S. Air Force report that alleged the F-35 had difficulty outmaneuvering an F-16, the F-35 joint strike fighter has built a reputation that it isn’t effective within visual ranges.
But on June 19 at the Paris Air Show, pilots said the upcoming flight demo this afternoon would dispel all notions that the jet can be handily beat by fourth generation fighters.
“I have seen those reports as well,” said Lt. Col. Scott “Cap” Gunn, an F-35 pilot at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida.
Gunn flew one of the two F-35As on site from Hill Air Force Base, Utah, to Le Bourget Airport, but the demonstrations this week will be flown by Lockheed test pilot Billie Flynn.

Fonte: DefenseNews ... "US Air Force, Lockheed aim to prove F-35 critics wrong in demo at Paris Air Show" ...
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Green glow ..... bye bye .....

Lockheed Martin recently tested a prototype from Rockwell Collins that could solve the F-35’s helmet-mounted display “green glow” issue, F-35 programme Jeff Babione told reporters at the Paris air show this week.
Pilots on the Joint Strike Fighter have struggled with a green glow created by light from the cockpit avionics display, which leaks into the HMD and affects visual acuity, distracting pilots on night landings during carrier qualifications.

Fonte: FlightGlobal ..... "PARIS: ​Rockwell Collins prototypes fix for F-35 green glow" .....

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Lara Seligman commenta, sullo Aerospace Daily & Defense Report (AW&ST), il ritorno alle operazioni di volo degli F-35A della Luke AFB ...

..... "Luke F-35s To Resume Flying, With Temporary Restrictions" .....

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Intanto ..... messi a terra gli F-35B (USMC) della Yuma Air Station .....

F-35B joint strike fighters based at Yuma Air Station in Arizona have been temporarily grounded due to issues with a key support system.
The issue centers on the stealth jet's Autonomic Logistics Information System, or ALIS.
The software behind ALIS is woven through the F-35, and plays a vital role in everything from planning missions to maintenance.
In April, ALIS 2.0.2 was installed on F-35A models and Navy F-35C models, but was delayed in getting out to the F-35B jump-jet variants.
"Maj. Gen. Mark Wise, commanding general of 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, made the decision to temporarily suspend VMFA-211 flight operations pending fixes to a recent ALIS software upgrade within version 2.0.2 that has presented some anomalies," Maj. Kurt Stahl, director of public affairs with the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, wrote in a statement.

Fonte: DefenseNews ..... "Marine F-35s grounded due to software concerns" .....
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Ancora in merito al fermo degli F-35B della Yuma Air Station e degli F-35A della Luke AFB .....

..... un commento del Daily Report dell' AFA ..... "USMC Temporarily Halts F-35 Flights as USAF Limits Luke Operations" .....