The F-35 Joint Program Office has grounded some new F-35 Joint Strike Fighters following an incident Dec. 15 when an aircraft went down on a runway in Texas. The pilot managed to eject.
In a statement released to Defense News yesterday, theF-35 Joint Program Office confirmed he stopped some F-35s without specifying the number.
"The F-35 Joint Program Office has issued a Time Compliance Technical Directive (TCTD) to restrict certain aircraft, which have been rated as high risk. In the meantime, the investigation into the incident of 15 December continues. The affected aircraft have been identified and the JPO will work with US military services and international partners to ensure compliance with the TCTD.
Video of the dramatic F-35B crash earlier this month at the Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base in Fort Worth, Texas and the grounding of its pilot quickly went viral on social media.
Lockheed Martin builds most of the F-35s at its Fort Worth facility and, at the time of the crash, had not yet transferred the new F-35B to the US government. Pratt & Whitney manufactures the F135 propulsion systems that power all variants of the F-35.
The video of the incident shows the US Air Force pilot performing quality checks on the F-35B for the Defense Contract Management Agency. The fighter drops suddenly, bounces off the ground, and flips forward. The nose and right wing touch the ground, the fighter begins to roll, and the pilot manages to eject.
The JPO declined to report that grounded F-35s were considered a higher risk.
An unnamed source said the JPO's initial assessment found that a propulsion system problem led to the Dec. 15 F-35B crash in flight, which has now led to a wider fleet shutdown.
The source said that, in the guidance provided to the services, the JPO said that a failure in a hose used to transfer high-pressure fuel in the fighter's F135 engine prompted the office to update its safety risk assessments.
The JPO also notified the services that jets with less than 40 flight hours are affected. The JPO declined, however, to confirm this information.
In a statement released to Defense News, Pratt & Whitney said it could not comment on the Dec. 15 incident because the investigation is still ongoing.
In its Tuesday statement to Defense News, the JPO said the shutdowns were made after a "preliminary risk assessment" and that it was taking steps it hoped could be changed in January.
"The safety of flight crews is the primary concern of the JPO”, concludes the press release.
While the JPO would not say exactly how many F-35s have been grounded, it did confirm that the jets that have been grounded include all three variants. Some of the stranded F-35s are American fighters.
Sunday news site Times of Israel it said the Israeli Air Force grounded 11 of its F-35s as a result of the crash and they will be checked for similar problems. Israel flies the F-35I, based on the F-35A.
In a statement released to Defense News, Lockheed Martin he said he is continuing to work with Navy officials in Fort Worth following the incident.
Lockheed Martin said on its website that it has delivered more than 875 F-35s to the U.S. military and program partner nations to date.