F-35’s List of Flaws Includes a Gun That Can’t Shoot Straight - F-35.jpg

http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/f-3...kV2?li=BBnbfcL

(Bloomberg) -- Add a gun that can’t shoot straight to the problems that dog
Lockheed Martin Corp.’s $428 billion F-35 program, including more than 800
software flaws.

The 25mm gun on Air Force models of the Joint Strike Fighter has “unacceptable”
accuracy in hitting ground targets and is mounted in housing that’s cracking,
the Pentagon’s test office said in its latest assessment of the costliest U.S.
weapons system.

The annual assessment by Robert Behler, the Defense Department’s director of
operational test and evaluation, doesn’t disclose any major new failings in the
plane’s flying capabilities. But it flags a long list of issues that his office
said should be resolved -- including 13 described as Category 1 “must-fix” items
that affect safety or combat capability -- before the F-35’s upcoming $22
billion Block 4 phase.

The number of software deficiencies totaled 873 as of November, according to the
report obtained by Bloomberg News in advance of its release as soon as Friday.
That’s down from 917 in September 2018, when the jet entered the intense combat
testing required before full production, including 15 Category 1 items. What was
to be a year of testing has now been extended another year until at least
October.

“Although the program office is working to fix deficiencies, new discoveries are
still being made, resulting in only a minor decrease in the overall number” and
leaving “many significant‘’ ones to address, the assessment said.

Cybersecurity ‘Vulnerabilities’

In addition, the test office said cybersecurity “vulnerabilities” that it
identified in previous reports haven’t been resolved. The report also cites
issues with reliability, aircraft availability and maintenance systems.

The assessment doesn’t deal with findings that are emerging in the current round
of combat testing, which will include 64 exercises in a high-fidelity simulator
designed to replicate the most challenging Russian, Chinese, North Korean and
Iranian air defenses.

Despite the incomplete testing and unresolved flaws, Congress continues to
accelerate F-35 purchases, adding 11 to the Pentagon’s request in 2016 and in
2017, 20 in fiscal 2018, 15 last year and 20 this year. The F-35 continues to
attract new international customers such as Poland and Singapore. Japan is the
biggest foreign customer, followed by Australia and the U.K.

By late September, 490 F-35s had been delivered and will require extensive
retrofitting. The testing office said those planes were equipped with six
different versions of software, with another on the way by the time that about
1,000 planes will be in the hands of the U.S. and foreign militaries.

A spokesmen for the Pentagon’s F-35 program office had no immediate comment on
the testing office’s report.

Brett Ashworth, a spokesman for Bethesda, Maryland-based Lockheed, said that
“although we have not seen the report, the F-35 continues to mature and is the
most lethal, survivable and connected fighter in the world.” He said
“reliability continues to improve, with the global fleet averaging greater than
65% mission capable rates and operational units consistently performing near
75%.”

The Mattis Test

Still, the testing office said “no significant portion” of the U.S.’s F-35 fleet
“was able to achieve and sustain” a September 2019 goal mandated by then-Defense
Secretary Jim Mattis: that the aircraft be capable 80% of the time needed to
perform at least one type of combat mission. That target is known as the
“Mission Capable” rate.

“However, individual units were able to achieve the 80% target for short periods
during deployed operations,” the report said. All the aircraft models lagged “by
a large margin” behind the more demanding goal of “Full Mission Capability.”

The Air Force’s F-35 model had the best rate at being fully mission capable,
while the Navy’s fleet “suffered from a particularly poor” rate, the test office
said. The Marine Corps version was “roughly midway” between the other two.

The Air Force and Navy versions are also continuing to have cracks in structural
components, according to the report, saying, “The effect on F-35 service life
and the need for additional inspection requirements are still being determined.”

Gun Woes

The three F-35 models are all equipped with 25mm guns. The Navy and Marine
versions are mounted externally and have acceptable accuracy. But the Air Force
model’s gun is mounted inside the plane, and the test office “considers the
accuracy, as installed, unacceptable” due to “misalignments” in the gun’s mount
that didn’t meet specifications.

The mounts are also cracking, forcing the Air Force to restrict the gun’s use.
The program office has “made progress with changes to gun installation” to
improve accuracy but they haven’t been tested yet, according to the report.





*

Miloch wrote in
:

http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/f-3...udes-a-gun-tha
t-cant-shoot-straight/ar-BBZtkV2?li=BBnbfcL

(Bloomberg) -- Add a gun that can’t shoot straight to the problems
that dog Lockheed Martin Corp.’s $428 billion F-35 program, including
more than 800 software flaws.

The 25mm gun on Air Force models of the Joint Strike Fighter has
“unacceptable” accuracy in hitting ground targets and is mounted in
housing that’s cracking, the Pentagon’s test office said in its latest
assessment of the costliest U.S. weapons system.

The annual assessment by Robert Behler, the Defense Department’s
director of operational test and evaluation, doesn’t disclose any
major new failings in the plane’s flying capabilities. But it flags a
long list of issues that his office said should be resolved --
including 13 described as Category 1 “must-fix” items that affect
safety or combat capability -- before the F-35’s upcoming $22 billion
Block 4 phase.

The number of software deficiencies totaled 873 as of November,
according to the report obtained by Bloomberg News in advance of its
release as soon as Friday. That’s down from 917 in September 2018,
when the jet entered the intense combat testing required before full
production, including 15 Category 1 items. What was to be a year of
testing has now been extended another year until at least October.

“Although the program office is working to fix deficiencies, new
discoveries are still being made, resulting in only a minor decrease
in the overall number” and leaving “many significant‘’ ones to
address, the assessment said.

Cybersecurity ‘Vulnerabilities’

In addition, the test office said cybersecurity “vulnerabilities” that
it identified in previous reports haven’t been resolved. The report
also cites issues with reliability, aircraft availability and
maintenance systems.

The assessment doesn’t deal with findings that are emerging in the
current round of combat testing, which will include 64 exercises in a
high-fidelity simulator designed to replicate the most challenging
Russian, Chinese, North Korean and Iranian air defenses.

Despite the incomplete testing and unresolved flaws, Congress
continues to accelerate F-35 purchases, adding 11 to the Pentagon’s
request in 2016 and in 2017, 20 in fiscal 2018, 15 last year and 20
this year. The F-35 continues to attract new international customers
such as Poland and Singapore. Japan is the biggest foreign customer,
followed by Australia and the U.K.

By late September, 490 F-35s had been delivered and will require
extensive retrofitting. The testing office said those planes were
equipped with six different versions of software, with another on the
way by the time that about 1,000 planes will be in the hands of the
U.S. and foreign militaries.

A spokesmen for the Pentagon’s F-35 program office had no immediate
comment on the testing office’s report.

Brett Ashworth, a spokesman for Bethesda, Maryland-based Lockheed,
said that “although we have not seen the report, the F-35 continues to
mature and is the most lethal, survivable and connected fighter in the
world.” He said “reliability continues to improve, with the global
fleet averaging greater than 65% mission capable rates and operational
units consistently performing near 75%.”

The Mattis Test

Still, the testing office said “no significant portion” of the U.S.’s
F-35 fleet “was able to achieve and sustain” a September 2019 goal
mandated by then-Defense Secretary Jim Mattis: that the aircraft be
capable 80% of the time needed to perform at least one type of combat
mission. That target is known as the “Mission Capable” rate.

“However, individual units were able to achieve the 80% target for
short periods during deployed operations,” the report said. All the
aircraft models lagged “by a large margin” behind the more demanding
goal of “Full Mission Capability.”

The Air Force’s F-35 model had the best rate at being fully mission
capable, while the Navy’s fleet “suffered from a particularly poor”
rate, the test office said. The Marine Corps version was “roughly
midway” between the other two.

The Air Force and Navy versions are also continuing to have cracks in
structural components, according to the report, saying, “The effect on
F-35 service life and the need for additional inspection requirements
are still being determined.”

Gun Woes

The three F-35 models are all equipped with 25mm guns.


When is the last time a fighter used guns in combat?

In article , Mitchell Holman
says...

Miloch wrote in
:

http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/f-3...udes-a-gun-tha
t-cant-shoot-straight/ar-BBZtkV2?li=BBnbfcL

(Bloomberg) -- Add a gun that can’t shoot straight to the problems
that dog Lockheed Martin Corp.’s $428 billion F-35 program, including
more than 800 software flaws.

The 25mm gun on Air Force models of the Joint Strike Fighter has
“unacceptable” accuracy in hitting ground targets and is mounted in
housing that’s cracking, the Pentagon’s test office said in its latest
assessment of the costliest U.S. weapons system.
The Air Force and Navy versions are also continuing to have cracks in
structural components, according to the report, saying, “The effect on
F-35 service life and the need for additional inspection requirements
are still being determined.”

Gun Woes

The three F-35 models are all equipped with 25mm guns.


When is the last time a fighter used guns in combat?

With its outrageous pricetag, the services are hard pressed to justify buying
them...so they boast all the things the F-35 can do...including ground
attack...and there-in lies the rub...unreliable guns for the USAF version that
has the guns stowed internally...those with the guns mounted externally have no
problems.

....yet another reason to keep the A-10!!!...which the USAF wants to retire to
save money to pay for F-35s that "Can't shoot straight".


What Couldn’t the F-4 Phantom Do?

https://www.airspacemag.com/military...-do-180953944/

...."Flying into combat without a shooting iron was another matter. “That was the
biggest mistake on the F-4,” says Chesire. “Bullets are cheap and tend to go
where you aim them. I needed a gun, and I really wished I had one.”

“Everyone in RF-4s wished they had a gun on the aircraft,” says Jack Dailey, a
retired U.S. Marine Corps general and director of the National Air and Space
Museum in Washington, D.C.

McDonnell’s earliest concept included interchangeable nose sections to readily
convert a standard F-4 into the RF-4B, a camera-equipped reconnaissance
aircraft. The aircraft’s most photo-friendly asset, however, was speed. RF-4Bs
flew alone and unarmed deep into unfriendly airspace. “Speed is life,” Phantom
pilots liked to say.

In the front seat of a Marine Corps photo-recon Phantom on more than 250
missions, Dailey was tasked to support Marines on the ground with film and
infrared imagery. “We were trying to track movement of the Viet Cong coming down
the Ho Chi Minh Trail,” he says. “They moved their trucks a lot at night. We
could fly along a road and pop flash cartridges and catch them out in the open.”

The recce pilots in RF-4s had good reason to wish for a gun: The focal length of
the RF-4’s camera lens and the required photo coverage imposed a flight regime
that didn’t include evasive action. “For photographic purposes, they wanted you
flying straight and level at about 5,000 feet,” says Dailey. The predictable
flight path and the absence of defensive weapons drew enemy calibers from
anti-aircraft artillery down to small arms. “We got hosed down every day,” says
Dailey. Often, ground forces simply used barrage fire—large groups firing rifles
and other sidearms into the sky simultaneously. Dailey’s Phantom was nailed on
nine occasions. A rifle round once penetrated the cockpit, narrowly missing him.
Another time he landed with so much engine damage “you could see light shining
through.”

Naval aviators were rudely initiated into an F-4 idiosyncrasy: As airplane and
deck parted company, the Phantom’s nose initially rose slowly. And with a bit
of speed, the nose could over-rotate to a near-stall attitude if not controlled.
“It got pretty wild,” says Chesire. “It was always lots of fun to watch new guys
take off.”



*

Miloch wrote in
:

In article , Mitchell
Holman says...

Miloch wrote in
:

http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/f-3...cludes-a-gun-t
ha t-cant-shoot-straight/ar-BBZtkV2?li=BBnbfcL

(Bloomberg) -- Add a gun that can’t shoot straight to the problems
that dog Lockheed Martin Corp.’s $428 billion F-35 program,
including more than 800 software flaws.

The 25mm gun on Air Force models of the Joint Strike Fighter has
“unacceptable” accuracy in hitting ground targets and is mounted in
housing that’s cracking, the Pentagon’s test office said in its
latest assessment of the costliest U.S. weapons system.
The Air Force and Navy versions are also continuing to have cracks
in structural components, according to the report, saying, “The
effect on F-35 service life and the need for additional inspection
requirements are still being determined.”

Gun Woes

The three F-35 models are all equipped with 25mm guns.


When is the last time a fighter used guns in combat?

With its outrageous pricetag, the services are hard pressed to justify
buying them...so they boast all the things the F-35 can do...including
ground attack...and there-in lies the rub...unreliable guns for the
USAF version that has the guns stowed internally...those with the guns
mounted externally have no problems.

...yet another reason to keep the A-10!!!...which the USAF wants to
retire to save money to pay for F-35s that "Can't shoot straight".



I thought ground attack was now handled by drones.

In article , Mitchell Holman
says...

Miloch wrote in
:

In article , Mitchell
Holman says...

Miloch wrote in
:

http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/f-3...cludes-a-gun-t
ha t-cant-shoot-straight/ar-BBZtkV2?li=BBnbfcL

(Bloomberg) -- Add a gun that can’t shoot straight to the problems
that dog Lockheed Martin Corp.’s $428 billion F-35 program,
including more than 800 software flaws.

The 25mm gun on Air Force models of the Joint Strike Fighter has
“unacceptable” accuracy in hitting ground targets and is mounted in
housing that’s cracking, the Pentagon’s test office said in its
latest assessment of the costliest U.S. weapons system.
The Air Force and Navy versions are also continuing to have cracks
in structural components, according to the report, saying, “The
effect on F-35 service life and the need for additional inspection
requirements are still being determined.”

Gun Woes

The three F-35 models are all equipped with 25mm guns.


When is the last time a fighter used guns in combat?

With its outrageous pricetag, the services are hard pressed to justify
buying them...so they boast all the things the F-35 can do...including
ground attack...and there-in lies the rub...unreliable guns for the
USAF version that has the guns stowed internally...those with the guns
mounted externally have no problems.

...yet another reason to keep the A-10!!!...which the USAF wants to
retire to save money to pay for F-35s that "Can't shoot straight".



I thought ground attack was now handled by drones.


Ground attack also means air support for those on the ground...who need to
communicate the pilot...no can do with a drone...or USAF F-16 pilots who refuse
to come down at low altitude to actually see what they're attacking...which
caused some controversy years ago.



*

On 30 Jan 2020 13:27:22 -0800, Miloch
wrote:

http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/f-3...kV2?li=BBnbfcL

(Bloomberg) -- Add a gun that can’t shoot straight to the problems that dog
Lockheed Martin Corp.’s $428 billion F-35 program, including more than 800
software flaws.

The 25mm gun on Air Force models of the Joint Strike Fighter has “unacceptable”
accuracy in hitting ground targets and is mounted in housing that’s cracking,
the Pentagon’s test office said in its latest assessment of the costliest U.S.
weapons system.

The annual assessment by Robert Behler, the Defense Department’s director of
operational test and evaluation, doesn’t disclose any major new failings in the
plane’s flying capabilities. But it flags a long list of issues that his office
said should be resolved -- including 13 described as Category 1 “must-fix” items
that affect safety or combat capability -- before the F-35’s upcoming $22
billion Block 4 phase.

The number of software deficiencies totaled 873 as of November, according to the
report obtained by Bloomberg News in advance of its release as soon as Friday.
That’s down from 917 in September 2018, when the jet entered the intense combat
testing required before full production, including 15 Category 1 items. What was
to be a year of testing has now been extended another year until at least
October.

“Although the program office is working to fix deficiencies, new discoveries are
still being made, resulting in only a minor decrease in the overall number” and
leaving “many significant‘’ ones to address, the assessment said.

Cybersecurity ‘Vulnerabilities’

In addition, the test office said cybersecurity “vulnerabilities” that it
identified in previous reports haven’t been resolved. The report also cites
issues with reliability, aircraft availability and maintenance systems.

The assessment doesn’t deal with findings that are emerging in the current round
of combat testing, which will include 64 exercises in a high-fidelity simulator
designed to replicate the most challenging Russian, Chinese, North Korean and
Iranian air defenses.

Despite the incomplete testing and unresolved flaws, Congress continues to
accelerate F-35 purchases, adding 11 to the Pentagon’s request in 2016 and in
2017, 20 in fiscal 2018, 15 last year and 20 this year. The F-35 continues to
attract new international customers such as Poland and Singapore. Japan is the
biggest foreign customer, followed by Australia and the U.K.

By late September, 490 F-35s had been delivered and will require extensive
retrofitting. The testing office said those planes were equipped with six
different versions of software, with another on the way by the time that about
1,000 planes will be in the hands of the U.S. and foreign militaries.

A spokesmen for the Pentagon’s F-35 program office had no immediate comment on
the testing office’s report.

Brett Ashworth, a spokesman for Bethesda, Maryland-based Lockheed, said that
“although we have not seen the report, the F-35 continues to mature and is the
most lethal, survivable and connected fighter in the world.” He said
“reliability continues to improve, with the global fleet averaging greater than
65% mission capable rates and operational units consistently performing near
75%.”

The Mattis Test

Still, the testing office said “no significant portion” of the U.S.’s F-35 fleet
“was able to achieve and sustain” a September 2019 goal mandated by then-Defense
Secretary Jim Mattis: that the aircraft be capable 80% of the time needed to
perform at least one type of combat mission. That target is known as the
“Mission Capable” rate.

“However, individual units were able to achieve the 80% target for short periods
during deployed operations,” the report said. All the aircraft models lagged “by
a large margin” behind the more demanding goal of “Full Mission Capability.”

The Air Force’s F-35 model had the best rate at being fully mission capable,
while the Navy’s fleet “suffered from a particularly poor” rate, the test office
said. The Marine Corps version was “roughly midway” between the other two.

The Air Force and Navy versions are also continuing to have cracks in structural
components, according to the report, saying, “The effect on F-35 service life
and the need for additional inspection requirements are still being determined.”

Gun Woes

The three F-35 models are all equipped with 25mm guns. The Navy and Marine
versions are mounted externally and have acceptable accuracy. But the Air Force
model’s gun is mounted inside the plane, and the test office “considers the
accuracy, as installed, unacceptable” due to “misalignments” in the gun’s mount
that didn’t meet specifications.

The mounts are also cracking, forcing the Air Force to restrict the gun’s use.
The program office has “made progress with changes to gun installation” to
improve accuracy but they haven’t been tested yet, according to the report.





*
99 Errors in the code

99 Errors in the code

Fix one error with a patch

101 errors in the code

Dave: