The Marine Corps has accepted six F-35B jets with ballast rather than radars in their nose cones—and the Air Force and Navy will have to do likewise later this year.

The post Marines Have 6 F-35s Without Radars; USAF Will Get Some Too appeared first on Air & Space Forces Magazine.

Software shortcomings, spare parts shortages, and corrosion problems have left fewer than one-quarter of the U.S. military’s F-35 Joint Strike Fighters able to carry out all their missions at any given time in fiscal 2025, according to a new Government Accountability Office report.

The post GAO Report: Just Over One in Four F-35As Fully Mission Capable appeared first on Air & Space Forces…

The Pentagon on March 30 announced a a $3.8 billion contract modification to buy F135 engines for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter from contractor Pratt & Whitney.

The post Pentagon Awards $6.6 Billion Contract for Next Two Lots of F-35 Engines appeared first on Air & Space Forces Magazine.

The first F-35 Joint Strike Fighter with ballast, rather than an advanced radar in its nose, flew an acceptance flight the last week of February, Air & Space Forces Magazine has learned. F-35s will arrive without radars at Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps bases for next several months and possibly into next year, until radar maker Northrop Grumman completes work on the next-generation AN/APG-85,…