WASHINGTON:  After years during which Lockheed Martin bore the brunt of barbs from various government watchdogs, the Government Accountability Office and the Pentagon’s Inspector General about the failures of the F-35 program. it is now Pratt & Whitney’s turn. First came the April 14 GAO report aimed at the F135, as the plane’s engine program is known.… Keep reading →

NATIONAL HARBOR: When the F-35A exploded June 23 on the runway, it took about 10 days before the Pentagon had worked out how to communicate to the public, to the Navy, Marines and Air Force and to its international partners what had happened, was happening and would happen. Today, Air Force Lt. Gen. Christopher Bogdan said that his… Keep reading →

NATIONAL PRESS CLUB: It hasn’t been tested yet, and the “root cause” for the problem has not yet been identified, but Lt. Gen. Chris Bogdan, head of the F-35 program, expects upcoming tests to demonstrate a fix for the engine problem discovered when an Air Force F-35A engine exploded early this summer. The fix will be… Keep reading →

THURSDAY UPDATE: F-35s Remain On Ground. Air Force Spokesmen Say WASHINGTON: The F-35A struck by fire as it took off from Eglin Air Force Base has been secured and is under armed guard in a secure hanger and the Air Force and Marines are not flying their versions of the Joint Strike Fighter program until they know… Keep reading →

UPDATED: Adds Pratt & Whitney Responses To Bogdan; Adds Lockheed Statement Correction (April 18 at 10:55 am) CRYSTAL CITY: Pratt & Whitney got a public drubbing from the sharp-tongued head of the F-35 fighter program, Lt. Gen. Christopher Bogdan, when the Pentagon released a new cost estimate for the military’s biggest weapons program. “Pratt’s not meeting their… Keep reading →

CAPITOL HILL: As F-35 program officials prepared to testify to the Senate Armed Services Committee, they announced they were keeping back some $25.7 million, or 5 percent, of payments for the F135 engine used in the Joint Strike Fighter. “Due to decertification of their Earned Value Management Process by the Defense Contract Management Agency, Pratt &… Keep reading →

WASHINGTON: Not much to add to today’s release about the sixth batch of F135 engines powering the Joint Strike Fighter. The deal is worth over $1 billion but we don’t have a precise figure yet or costs per engine. Here’s the nub: “in general, the unit prices for the 32 common configuration engines which are used… Keep reading →

Watch the F-35B, the Marines’ fighter of choice, execute a very cool maneuver in this video, taking off straight up into the sky. While very cool, this is not something the Joint Strike Fighter is actually expected to do very often. For one thing, it requires enormous amounts of fuel. Instead, the B model is… Keep reading →

Leon Panetta, President Obama’s nominee to succeed Defense Secretary Robert Gates, faces significant challenges in using a declining defense budget to support an aging military fleet. Our national debt has put us on an unsustainable path. As the new Secretary of Defense, Mr. Panetta must reconcile the need to reduce defense spending while equipping our… Keep reading →