The us Department of defense has discovered new flaws in the 5th-generation f-35 fighter developed by Lockheed Martin Corporation amid an increase in orders for this machine. In particular, problems are related to the accuracy of targeting a 25 mm gun.
In his annual report, the Pentagon's Director of operational testing and evaluation, Robert Beler, noted numerous shortcomings in the f-35 fighter developed by Lockheed Martin, including more than a dozen of them marked in the document as"mandatory for elimination".
According to Beler's estimates, they can affect the combat readiness of the aircraft and the use of the F-35, if they are not corrected in a timely manner.
As of November 2019, according to the review, the aircraft has 873 software defects compared to 917 as of September 2018. This data is cited by Bloomberg.
The F-35 is equipped with a 25 mm gun in all its variants. However, if the models for the Navy and marine corps rated the accuracy of the guns installed outside as acceptable, then in the version for the air force with a gun in the body, it was unsatisfactory because of the misalignment of the mounts, which, as it turned out, also crack.
"Despite the fact that the developers of the F-35 are working to eliminate the existing shortcomings, new problems are being discovered, which leads to a slight decrease in the total number of revealed shortcomings»,
"the report says. It adds that there are still "many significant" unresolved issues. In addition, the document also fixes flaws related to cybersecurity issues in the operation of the F-35.
Moreover, the report does not yet reflect the results of the latest tests of the F-35, which simulated armed conflicts with Iran, North Korea, China, as well as with the best air defense systems of Russia.
However, Bloomberg notes that despite such findings, the us Congress has steadily increased purchases of F-35S in recent years, adding 11 to the Pentagon's requests for 2016 and 2017, 20 in 2018, 15 in 2019 and 20 in 2020.
This fighter had a great impact on potential buyers in the world's weapons markets. As of the end of September 2019, the us aviation industry has delivered about 500 F-35 aircraft.
"Although we haven't seen this report yet, our F-35 continues to improve and is currently the most formidable fighter in the world. It is able to survive in the difficult conditions of modern combat and is organically incorporated into ultra-large weapon systems, " Lockheed Martin spokesman Brett Ashworth told Bloomberg.
He added that " the reliability of the aircraft continues to improve constantly, among the total number of F-35S, more than 65% of the aircraft are ready to perform tasks for their intended purpose, and in the air force units and formations, the number of combat-ready fighters is about 75%."
And although the operation of the f-35 fighter is still marred by major shortcomings and technical failures, no one in the United States and among their allies by and large does not question the ability of this machine to perform its combat tasks.
11 countries — Australia, Belgium, Denmark, Italy, Israel, the Netherlands, Norway, Japan, South Korea, Turkey and the United Kingdom-have chosen the F-35 as their prospective fighter. Now Singapore and Poland are added to them. Nine partner countries of the United States have contributed funds for the development and mass production of this aircraft.
According to the American pilots, the number of shortcomings identified during the refinement of the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet, EA-18G Growler and F-22 Raptor, was not less, and in some cases even more.
"If you dig into the archive, you will see that, for example, the formation of the Super Hornet aircraft during the first years of its operation looked similar. The same can be said for the F-14 Tomcat. And there are so many new technologies built into the F-35 that not everything will go smoothly from the very beginning," explained one of the us Navy pilots.
"Many experts, including us, are systematically engaged in pouring mud on this plane. And fighters simply happen as successful in their design, and not very", - explained "Газете.Ru" source in the Russian aviation industry.
The main thing in the F-35 is not its flight characteristics as an aircraft, although they are undoubtedly important, according to the expert. The main thing is the ability of this aircraft to integrate with large and ultra-large combat systems — with AWACS aircraft, ground control points, aircraft carriers, anti-aircraft missile systems, etc.
The second key difference between the F-35 and previous aircraft is its low visibility. In the air and air defense battles of the future, it will play a crucial role.
Finally, we should definitely mention the ALIS (Autonomy Logistics and Information System) system. It is the world's first system for centralized daily monitoring of the technical condition of F-35 aircraft in real time. In previous-generation fighters, several different systems performed these functions on a daily basis. There is only one global center, the so-called Autonomous logistics Operating Unit (ALOU), where the range of spare parts is formed and their distribution as needed for F — 35 operators. All ALIS servers are connected to each other via encrypted ground or satellite systems.
"I must say that we do not even fully understand the architecture of this system and understand the features of its functioning. In fact, this is a revolution in military Affairs. It allows you to control every F-35, all operators, regardless of the region where the machine is located, and if necessary, limit the range of combat tasks performed by the aircraft. It used to be that the US could say to any buyer of its weapons — " you bought missiles from us, but let them lie on our territory for now." This is not necessary now. If necessary, the US will limit its ally by pressing one button of the ALIS system, " the source said "Газеты.Ru".
At the same time, it is now impossible to say whether the Americans put it on this plane, the expert says, adding that the Americans were not mistaken with the F-16 — they absolutely accurately predicted the niche of such a combat vehicle.
A similar story happened with the Russian su-27. At first, few people believed in it, and many considered it a highly specialized aircraft. However, today the su-27-based aircraft are the basis of the combat power of the Russian air force.
As for possible purchases of Russian su-57 5th-generation fighters instead of the F-35, for example, by Turkey, the strategy of this country today is to create a certain military potential for actions in purely specific areas, and the choice of weapons and military equipment that will solve these problems already belongs to modern Turkish tactics.
Similar destinations for Turkey are currently Greece, Turkey and Cyprus, and recently we can talk about Libya. This also applies to the problem of developing hydrocarbon deposits both in the Eastern Mediterranean and on the Libyan shelf. And in one of these areas, the Greece-Israel axis is clearly looming, both in terms of production areas and possible routes for transporting raw materials. Moreover, Greece is a member of NATO, and Israel is the closest us ally in the region.
For a possible solution to such geopolitical problems, the American fighter of the 5th generation F-35 of Turkey is categorically not suitable.
In the event of military action, the combat capability of the F-35 can be reduced to zero with a single turn of the ALIS key. There is every reason to believe that such a scenario can not suit Turkey in the future, even if the situation with the refusal of the United States to supply the F-35 to Ankara will be reviewed.
As for the numerous shortcomings that are revealed during the operation of this aircraft in the United States and Washington's allies, most experts do not tend to overly dramatize the situation, but consider the list of shortcomings of the F-35 as inevitable at the stage of finishing a promising machine.
- That is sarcastic of course ...
