The F-35 Stealth Fighter May Never Be Ready for Combat
Testing report contradicts the U.S. Air Force’s rosy pronouncements
by DAN GRAZIER & MANDY SMITHBERGER
This story originally appeared on Sept. 10, 2016. With 263,000 views, it was our third-most popular story of the year.
The F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program is the most expensive procurement program in Pentagon history. It’s been plagued by schedule delays, gross cost overruns and a slew of underwhelming performance reviews.
Last month the Air Force declared its variant “ready for combat,” and most press reports lauded this as a signal that the program had turned a corner. But a memo issued from the Pentagon’s top testing official, based largely upon the Air Force’s own test data, showed that the declaration was wildly premature.
https://warisboring.com/the-f-35-stealth-fighter-may-never-be-ready-for-combat-852317be3368#.d3ce81bzv
