First, Build Your(F-35) Jets

Aviation Week and Space Technology ^ | 2/9/2010 | Bill Sweetman

[ErnstStavroBlofeld]

A good deal of our coverage of JSF has been focused on flight testing, and that is the focus of the latest program changes revealed since the turn of the year. However, there are also problems affecting the JSF production effort.

As noted in yesterday's post, briefings by JSF program office leaders (then-director Maj Gen Charles Davis in September 2008 and deputy director Brig Gen CD Moore a year later) set out the planned first flight and delivery dates for the remaining systems development and demonstration (SDD) aircraft.

All were missed with one exception - the first flight of BF-2 in February 2009. However, that was before Davis moved on, after which the new management decided to stop striving to meet first flight dates with aircraft that were not ready for test.

Three of the remaining jets flew more than a year behind the schedule set in 2008. Four were between six and eight months late. The two SDD aircraft that have not yet flown (CF-2 and CF-3) are respectively 13 and 15 months behind the 2008 schedule, and seven and eight months behind the 2009 schedule. It looks like a production line that is slowing down, rather than accelerating.

Moving on to the LRIP lots: Moore predicted in September 2009 that the first two LRIP aircraft, AF-6 and AF-7 (AF-5 was the USAF test aircraft canceled in September 2007's "risk reduction"), would be delivered to Eglin AFB in July 2010. They have yet to fly, although the JPO can argue that they have been delayed while they are being modified for a flight testing role at Edwards AFB.

[screaminsunshine]

Seems like they are awfully committed to an unproven plane.

[ErnstStavroBlofeld]

The plane has over 500 flights under its belt, its always something wrong with Lockheed.

[screaminsunshine]

Is it as good as the F-22?