“an alloy used in magnets in the F-35’s turbomachine pumps was produced in China”
That material could have very well been supplied by a third or even fourth party supplier and the material source tracking info fell through the cracks somewhere.
Just a guess at what could be one of many scenarios.....but I’ve personally seen that particular one.
Late buddy of mine used to work for an outfit on Long Island that supplied hardware to the aviation industry. There was a huge problem with counterfeit nuts, bolts etc. He used to tell me that it was not uncommon for the documentation to far outweigh the hardware being shipped.