F-35 Lightning II aircraft: the state of the program to October 2010

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(WAPA) - The F-35 Lightning II flight test program continues to track ahead of plan on both the conventional takeoff and landing (CTOL) variant and the carrier variant (CV), while the short takeoff and vertical landing (STOVL) variant flight completions remain behind schedule. Overall, the program has completed 321 flights this year, 28 flights ahead of plan through October.

The F-35 flight test team completed 52 flights against a plan of 50 in October. The CTOL aircraft logged 22 flights against a plan of 17; STOVL jets flew 27 times against a plan of 28; and the CV jet flew three times against a plan of five. Additionally, the STOVL jet flew supersonically, and at Mach 1.3 has flown faster than any other variant to date, and achieved 7 g’s, the highest load condition to date and maximum design g’s for the STOVL.

The CTOL variant is 66 flights ahead of plan and the CV is three flights ahead of plan; however, the STOVL variant is 41 flights behind plan for the year. STOVL aircraft component reliability continues to be the principal challenge. F-35 program officials are pursuing a multi-faceted approach to improve tempo, including working to obtain higher levels of spare parts from suppliers to keep the aircraft in a flight-ready condition, while completing the analysis and corrective action planning to address the root cause of any issues. The plan calls for 51 flights in November, toward the total of 394 for 2010. (Avionews)

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