DT friend Bob Cox of the Fort Worth Star Telegram passed this along to us...poor JSF...
The F-35 test aircraft was supposed to begin flying again Tuesday after a seven-month grounding, but the flight was aborted about 2 p.m. No word yet on why the flight was scrubbed.
Lockheed Martin had made no announcement about the pending flight, but word got out. The hill where the White Settlement Road bridge ties into Spur 341 was crawling with photographers and some Lockheed Martin employees.
The plane last flew on May 3 when it suffered a severe electrical system malfunction that resulted in an indefinite grounding. Further problems discovered by Pratt & Whitney with identical engines to the one used in the test aircraft added to the delays.
See this excellent article recasting many of the technical issues that have come up with the F-35.
Also check out Monday's Star-Telegram piece on how delays and rising costs are deterring F-35 orders by the very countries that have contributed money to development of the F-35.
More reason for increased F-22 buys? (Come on, don't get snippy, I'm just kidding...)Except maybe I'm not.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Air Force said on Tuesday it had grounded all its older-model F-15 fighter jets, as many as 450 aircraft, for the third time in four weeks, after finding cracks in a third aircraft under a tightened inspection routine.
Air Force Secretary Michael Wynne told the Reuters Aerospace and Defense Summit in Washington that the latest F-15 "stand down" underscored the need to extend Lockheed Martin Corp's production line for the F-22 fighter, designed to replace the Cold War-era F-15s.
Hey, the F-22s are flying and have been given a "B" designation. The F-35 can't seem to get back up in the air, so...?
-- Christian
