Newest F-35s stalled by slow production of key parts

Lockheed Martin has finished building fewer than half of the upgraded F-35 Joint Strike Fighters it promised this year, as slow production of key parts is holding up multiple new jets, the Pentagon’s top officer in charge of the program told lawmakers Tuesday, Report informs, citing Defense News.

Lt. General Michael Schmidt, the F-35′s program executive officer, said at a House Armed Services tactical air and land forces subcommittee hearing Lockheed Martin is under contract to deliver 52 jets enabled with improvements known as Technology Refresh 3 by the end of this year. The company has finished construction on 21 of those.

But production on a handful of key components needed for the TR-3 hardware has ramped up slower than expected, Schmidt said, and the rest of the newest jets are still sitting at Lockheed Martin’s factory in Fort Worth, Texas, waiting for those parts. Schmidt declined to describe these parts to reporters after the hearing.

He told reporters Lockheed “is paying a significant price” for its inability to meet its contractual requirements on the TR-3 jets, though he would not detail these penalties.