Key Points
- The latest Pentagon operational testing report on the F-35 shows a year of progress on F-35B IOC preparation
- Flights sciences testing for the F-35A lagged behind 2014 goals, as test centres prioritised Block 2B mission systems
The Pentagon's Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter programme placed a heavy focus on completing outstanding work on 2B software in preparation for the US Marine Corps' (USMC's) plan to declare its jump-jet variant of the combat aircraft operationally deployable, according to the latest official report on operational testing progress for US Department of Defense weapon systems.
"Flights sciences testing for the F-35A lagged behind its test flight and test point goals for [calendar year 2014] CY14 as the test centres prioritised resources to focus on Block 2B mission systems testing," the Pentagon's director of operational test and evaluation (DOT&E) said in the report, which was published 20 January.
The USMC is planning to allow the stealthy aircraft to deploy with 2B software.
"The programme focused on completing F-35 Block 2B development and flight testing in an effort to provide limited combat capability to the fielded early production aircraft and to support the Marine Corps plans for declaring initial operational capability [IOC] in 2015," the report stated.
"In spite of the focused effort, the programme was not able to accomplish its goal of completing Block 2B flight testing by the end of October," the document continued. However, the F-35 programme office last week announced that all weapons tests needed for 2B software is complete and will be ready for IOC certification. Completion of 2B flight testing is expected within the next few months, the programme office told IHS Jane's at the time.
Still, the DOT&E noted a number of shortcomings in the test plan, including the need for adequate testing of software upgrades for the Autonomic Logistics Information System on operationally representative hardware prior to fielding to operational units, as well as ongoing problems with system reliability.
Lieutenant General Chris Bogdan, the Pentagon's F-35 programme manager, said in a 20 January email statement to IHS Jane's that he saw "no surprises" in the report. "All of the issues mentioned were well known to us and our industry partners," he said, adding that he has already taken action most of the report's recommendations before the document had been drafted.
"Despite several setbacks and challenges in 2014, the F-35 test programme achieved significant progress and demonstrated substantial system maturity towards 2B fleet release and US Marine Corps initial operation capability," Lt Gen Bogdan added. He noted that the programme overcame a "catastrophic" engine fire July 2014 that grounded the fleet and "pressurised the completion of test points due to aircraft limitations and inspections".
Regarding reliability and maintainability rates faulted in the report, the general said the programme has been "trending in the right direction" for the past six months. "F-35 availability has been holding at 50% or above since October 2014," he said.
He also noted that the F-35 test programme has passed the halfway mark. "We're approximately 60% complete with the test programme, and there is still a lot of challenging work ahead of us," Lt Gen Bogdan said.
COMMENT
This year's DOT&E report on the F-35 is notable in that it is not dominated by the kind of headline-grabbing criticism contained in prior reports. Despite what could have been a lost year in the wake of a "catastrophic" engine fire in July, 2014 turned into a year of progress for the most expensive weapons acquisition in US history.
However, because the 2B software received so much care this year in preparation for F-35B IOC, the A-model will have to move back into focus quickly. A full schedule of software adjustments and testing stands between the US Air Force and its ability to deploy with 3F software in 2017 as planned.
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