LIGHTNING IITHE FIGHTER EVOLUTION - F-35

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F-35 LIGHTNING II Latest news

and is dependent on “work-arounds that

would not meet expectations in combat

situations”. It says that fleet-wide availability

rates remain around 50% – “a condition that

has existed with no significant improvement

since October 2014, despite the increasing

number of new aircraft”. It says a notable

trend is an expanded percentage of the fleet

that cannot fly while awaiting replacement

parts. The supply chain was openly

criticised during the recent US Marine

Corps deployment by VMFA-121 in Japan.

Aircraft deficiencies are also identified,

including with the helmet display and

night-vision camera, restrictions in aerial

refuelling for the F-35B and F-35C, and

that such deficiencies, if unresolved,

will be assessed during IOT&E.

Interestingly, Lockheed Martin

announced in June that it had selected

Raytheon to develop a next-generation

Distributed Aperture System (DAS). The

current Northrop Grumman AN/AAQ-

37 Electro-Optical Distributed Aperture

System (EODAS) is a 360-degree, spherical

situational awareness system for the pilot.

It warns the pilot of incoming aircraft and

missile threats as well as providing day/

night vision. However, pilots have openly

spoken about limitations with the system,

with some saying they don’t use it regularly,

especially in critical phases of flight.

“The supply chain competition for the next-

generation F-35 Distributed Aperture System

resulted in significant cost savings, reliability

and performance improvements,” said Greg

Ulmer, Lockheed Martin vice president and

general manager of the F-35 programme. “We

are aggressively pursuing cost reduction across

the F-35 enterprise and this initiative is a clear

demonstration of our unrelenting commitment

to reduce costs and deliver transformational

capabilities for the warfighter.” The Raytheon-

built DAS will be integrated into F-35s

starting with Lot 15 aircraft, expected to begin

deliveries in 2023. Presumably ahead of the

cost savings Ulmer mentions, there will need

to be comprehensive (and expensive) testing to

integrate the new system and then retrofit

it back across the sizeable existing fleet.

First Dutch

F-35 at Cameri

Work has begun on the first Italian-built

F-35A for the Koninklijke Luchtmacht

(Royal Netherlands Air Force, RNLAF).

The milestone was symbolically marked

on July 15, when the Dutch State

Secretary for Defence Barbara Visser

put her signature to the fuselage of

aircraft AN-9. This gave the official

go-ahead for construction of the jet

at the Italian Final Assembly and

Check-Out (FACO) facility in Cameri.

The aircraft is expected to arrive in

the Netherlands at the end of next

year. The first two RNLAF aircraft (09-

5008/AN-01 and 10-5019/AN-02) were

built in the United States and are still

flying there on test and evaluation

assignments. A total of 37 jets are

planned for the Netherlands.

In all, 29 RNLAF Lightning IIs will

be built in Cameri. The other eight

will roll off the Lockheed Martin

production line in Fort Worth.

The frontline Dutch F-35s will be based

at Leeuwarden Air Base. The RNLAF is

currently working hard on the necessary

preparations to introduce the new

fighter in the Netherlands, including

establishing facilities for the Autonomic

Logistics Information System (ALIS).

In the Netherlands, ALIS will be

installed at Volkel Air Base, where

equipment installation is almost

complete. Volkel will then be able to

support maintenance for Dutch F-35s

stationed in the US and at home.

‘Green Knights’ close out deployment

VMFA-121 completed its first operational

deployment with the F-35B when six

jets returned to MCAS Iwakuni, Japan,

after departing from the flight deck of

the amphibious assault ship USS Wasp

(LHD 1). The ship returned to Sasebo on

April 26, 2018, after conducting nearly

two months of operations in the Indo-

Pacific with the 31st Marine Expeditionary

Unit (MEU). The six F-35Bs arrived

aboard the Wasp in early March.

ABOVE: The 300th Lightning II, F-35A serial 15-5175 for the 388th Fighter Wing. Lockheed Martin

An F-35B of VMFA-121 prepares

to land on amphibious assault ship

USS ‘Wasp’ (LHD 1) on April 13.

USMC/LCpl Amy Phan

A VX-9 F-35C shows o the

F-35’s internal weapons bays

during a mission in June 2018.

James Deboer

F-35