F-35 Lightning II developments

[Piet Luijken]

F-35 Lightning II Program Status and Fast Facts
October 8, 2014

Program Status
• SDD flight test activity totals for 2014 as of September 30, are provided below:
o F-35A Flight Science aircraft have flown 156 times
o F-35B Flight Science aircraft have completed 261 flights
o F-35C Flight Science aircraft have flown 201 times
o The Mission Systems Test Aircraft have flown 387 times
• Since December 2006, F-35s have flown more than 21,000 cumulative flight hours.

F-35 Delivery Status
107 F-35s have been delivered to the Department of Defense as of July 22:
• 87 Low Rate Initial Production (LRIP) Aircraft
o 45 F-35As (including two international aircraft)
o 34 F-35Bs (including three international aircraft)
o 8 F-35Cs
• 20 System Development and Demonstration (SDD) aircraft complete the test and development fleet:
o There are four F-35As assigned to Edwards AFB, Calif., and five F-35Bs along with four F-35Cs stationed at PAX River NAS, Md. This count includes six static aircraft and AA-1.

Highlights of the Last Two Months
• The Department of the Navy decided to base F-35C aircraft at NAS Lemoore, California. (announced Oct. 2)
• The second F-35A Lightning II for the Royal Australian Air Force made its first flight (Oct. 1)
• The Royal Australian Air Force’s first F-35A made its debut flight (Sept. 29)
• Maj. Gen. Jay Silveria became the first DOD general officer to complete qualification training in the F-35 (Sept. 26)
• South Korea formally announced on Wednesday that it would buy 40 F-35A fighter jets (Sept. 24)
• Marine Fighter Attack Training Squadron 501 executed the first F-35B flight supported entirely by Marine maintenance (Sept. 4)
• BAE Systems signed an agreement to provide advanced manufactured components for the F-35 as part of a long-term arrangement with Northrop Grumman (announced Sept. 2)
• Luke AFB launched 100th F-35 sortie (Aug. 26)
• U.S. Army selected for F-35 software assessment (Aug. 12)
• First pipeline class of F-35 crew chiefs graduated from Eglin AFB training center (Aug. 7)

Planned Quantities*
USAF 1,763 F-35As
USN 260 F-35Cs
USMC 340 F-35Bs/80 F-35Cs
U.K. RAF/RN 138 F-35Bs
Italy 60 F-35As/30 F-35Bs
Netherlands 37 F-35As
Turkey 100 F-35As
Australia 100 F-35As
Norway 52 F-35As
Denmark 30 F-35As
Canada 65 F-35As
Israel 19 F-35As
S. Korea 40 F-35As
Japan 42 F-35As
*Based on current programs of record.

Funding
• Long-lead funding LRIP lot 9 (57 aircraft)
• Long-Lead funding LRIP lot 8 (43 aircraft)
• Full funding approved for LRIP lots 6&7 (71 aircraft)
• Full funding approved for LRIP lot 5 (32 aircraft)
• Full funding approved for LRIP lot 4 (32 aircraft)
• Full funding approved for LRIP lot 3 (17 aircraft)
• Full funding approved for LRIP lot 2 (12 aircraft)
• Full funding approved for LRIP lot 1 (2 aircraft)

Cost
• The U.S. DOD announced an agreement aimed at reducing the price of an F-35 to the equivalent of today's 4th generation fighters by the end of the decade known as Blueprint for Affordability on July 10.
• The U.S. government has stated the projected cost of an F-35 purchased in 2018 will be $85 million. That’s the equivalent of $75 million today.
• More than $500 million reduction in concurrency costs over the first five production lot contracts.
• Unit costs have dropped more than 55 percent since the procurement of the first production aircraft.
• The average aircraft unit cost for an LRIP 6 aircraft is approximately 2.5 percent lower than LRIP 5 aircraft. An LRIP 7 aircraft has an average unit cost approximately six percent lower than LRIP 5 aircraft.
• LRIP 6 Aircraft Costs (not including engine):
o 23 F-35As CTOL - $103 million/jet
o 6 F-35B STOVL - $109 million/jet
o 7 F-35C CV - $120 million/jet
• LRIP 7 Aircraft Costs (not including engine):
o 24 F-35As CTOL - $98 million/jet
o 7 F-35B STOVL - $104 million/jet
o 4 F-35C CV - $116 million/jet

F-35 Quantities by Variant and Country for LRIP 1 − 8

LRIP 1 (2 Total) - 2 U.S. / 0 International
United States
o 2 F-35A CTOL for the U.S. Air Force

LRIP 2 (12 Total) - 12 U.S. / 0 International
United States
o 6 F-35A CTOL for the U.S. Air Force
o 6 F-35B STOVL for the U.S. Marine Corps

LRIP 3 (17 Total) - 14 U.S. / 3 International
United States
o 7 F-35A CTOL for the U.S. Air Force
o 7 F-35B STOVL for the U.S. Marine Corps
International
o 1 F-35A CTOL for the Netherlands
o 2 F-35B STOVL for UK

LRIP 4 (32 Total) - 30 U.S. / 2 International
United States
o 10 F-35A CTOL for the U.S. Air Force
o 16 F-35B STOVL for the U.S. Marine Corps
o 4 F-35C CV for the U.S. Navy
International
o 1 F-35A CTOL for the Netherlands
o 1 F-35B STOVL for the UK

LRIP 5 (32 Total) - 32 U.S. / 0 International
United States
o 22 F-35A CTOL for the U.S. Air Force
o 3 F-35B STOVL for the U.S. Marine Corps
o 7 F-35C CV for the U.S. Navy

LRIP 6 (36 Total) - 31 U.S. / 5 International
United States
o 18 F-35A CTOL for the U.S. Air Force
o 6 F-35B STOVL for the U.S. Marine Corps
o 7 F-35C CV for the U.S. Navy
International
o 3 F-35A CTOL for Italy
o 2 F-35A CTOL for Australia

LRIP 7 (35 Total) - 29 U.S. / 6 International
United States
o 19 F-35A CTOL for the U.S. Air Force
o 6 F-35B STOVL for the U.S. Marine Corps
o 4 F-35C CV for the U.S. Navy
International
o 3 F-35A CTOL for Italy
o 2 F-35A CTOL for Norway
o 1 F-35B STOVL for the UK

LRIP 8 (43 Total) - 29 U.S. / 14 International (4 UK, 2 Norway, 2 Italy, 4 Japan, 2 Israel)
United States
o 19 F-35A CTOL for the USAF
o 6 F-35B for the U.S. Marine Corps
o 4 F-35C for the U.S. Navy
International
o 4 F-35B STOV for UK
o 2 F-35A CTOL for Norway
o 2 F-35A CTOL for Italy
o 4 F-35A CTOL for Japan
o 2 F-35A CTOL for Israel

[Richard from Rotterdam]

from Aviation Week: http://aviationweek.com/defense/f-35-te ... engine-fix

F-35 Test Jets to Undergo ‘Burn In’ for F135 Engine Fix
Oct 16, 2014Amy Butler | Aerospace Daily & Defense Report


The Pentagon’s long-awaited deal with Pratt & Whitney to build the seventh low-rate production lot of F135 engines for the multinational F-35 fighter has finally been signed, though officials have not yet outlined a clear path forward to address the design issue that led to an engine fire that grounded the fleet of single-engine aircraft this summer.

Program officials have, however, approved a workaround to an engine retrofit that will get the test fleet back to unrestricted flight soon, according to a government source.

The average price for the 36 engines included in low-rate, initial production (LRIP) lot 7 is $18.8 million. The Oct. 14 contract is for $592 million and adds to earlier allocated funding. The total now for procurement is $680 million for this lot, according to Joe Dellavedova, F-35 spokesman for the Pentagon. Additionally, Pratt received a $263 million sustainment contract in December 2013 for LRIP 7 activities, bringing the total cost of this lot to $943 million.

Pratt declines to release its pricing for different engine variants, citing common practice in the engine market and competitive sensitivities.

The buy includes 19 engines for the U.S. Air Force’s conventional-takeoff-and-landing F-35A, six for the Marine Corps short-takeoff-and-landing (stovl) F-35B and four for the Navy’s carrier version. An additional seven engines, including one stovl version, are included for international partners.

Pratt referred requests for information on the contract to the F-35 Joint Program Office.

Though variant pricing is not released, the program office says the average cost of the engines was cut by 4.5% from LRIP 6 to 7. A similar reduction is expected in a forthcoming announcement for the next lot.

The Pentagon expects to sign the deal on LRIP 8 in the “near future,” Dellavedova says.

Lockheed Martin is the F-35 prime contractor; Pratt’s engine contracts are direct with the U.S. government. The government turns the engines over to Lockheed Martin as government furnished equipment for installation into F-35s as they are produced.

Meanwhile, the Pentagon has yet to announce a definitive path forward for dealing with a design problem in the F135 that led to an engine fire June 23 that temporarily grounded the fleet and kept the F-35 from making its international debut at the Royal International Air Tattoo and Farnborough air show in July.

Use of a brand new F-35A to conduct a ridge riding maneuver – requiring a combination of yaw, roll and Gs – prompted excessive friction inside the third-stage integrally bladed rotor (IBR). Three weeks later, the engine caught fire as a result of continued friction and heat – exceeding 1,900F, almost twice the expected temperature, inside the engine.

This problem was not detected on the F-35 earlier because the combination of low hours on an engine with such a maneuver had not been encountered, Bennett Croswell, president of Pratt & Whitney Military Engines, told reporters last month. Because the aircraft had so few flight hours, a suitable trench for the stator tips had not been “burned in” to the engine’s polyimide foam for a proper seal. Such a trench would normally be - and in the case of earlier development aircraft, had been - burned in as the aircraft was gradually introduced to more taxing maneuvers.

Pratt has been testing various densities of the polyimide foam used to form the plate seal between the stators and the IBR on a specially devised “rub rig” at its West Palm Beach, Florida, facility to select one for a retrofit. A government official says the program has not yet selected the retrofit fix; options are under review.

The system design and demonstration aircraft, however, will undergo a “burn in” process, whereby specific maneuvers are used to gradually wear in a proper trench between the stator and polyimide foam, the government source says. It is unclear how long this will take, but the process is expected to get the remainder of the flight test aircraft back into unrestricted operations.

The fleet continues to require borescope engine inspections after 3 hr. (or up to six hours if conducting aerial refueling or transits)of flight. Flying is limited to Mach 1.6 and 3.2g. The burn-in will eliminate these restrictions, which are causing continued delays in portions of the testing program.

[tally]

First flights to my knowledge this month are the following in addition to already posted:

AF-54 - 12-5043/LF - Unk but seen active Oct 3 and 15, 2014. First flight presumed in October nonetheless.
AF-55 - 12-5044/LF - Oct 16, 2014.
AF-56 - 12-5045/LF - Oct 16, 2014.
BF-38 - 169023/VM-10 - Oct 13, 2014. I believe this to be VM-10 that made the first STOVL take-off and landing Oct 13, 2014.

Together with the second Aussie that makes for 5 airframes this month. I believe a new record. In addition they will try to get CF-14 up in the next few days.

[Melchior Timmers]

BF-38 - .../.. - Oct 13, 2014. I believe this to be VM-10 that made the first STOVL take-off and landing Oct 13

This one is reported as 169023, the very first aircraft noted which has a buno in the 169xxx range.

[Piet Luijken]

Lockheed Martin Corp on Monday confirmed that it had delivered just 22 of 36 F-35 fighter jets promised to the U.S. government this year, but had a plan to complete work on the remaining 14 warplanes over the next two months.

"We are not giving up on delivering 14 more aircraft this year," Lockheed Martin spokesman Mike Rein told Reuters when asked about delays in deliveries. "We'll get there."

A source familiar with the $399 billion Joint Strike Fighter program, the Pentagon's costliest weapons project, said slower-than-expected deliveries had sparked concern about whether Lockheed Martin would meet its delivery target of 36 jets for the full year. The company could lose incentive fees if it does not, said the source, who was not authorized to speak publicly.

The Pentagon's F-35 program office had no immediate comment on the issue.

Rein said 12 of the 14 remaining airplanes were on the flight line conducting engine run and flight operations and had completed final finishes and signature testing. The remaining two jets would complete final finishes by November 3, he said.

Two of the jets on the flight line had already completed their acceptance flights and were now being prepared for acceptance by the U.S. government, he said.

Testing and deliveries of the F-35s had been slowed by a three-week fleetwide grounding due to an engine issue that first emerged in June and also by increased paperwork associated with the shift from the fifth to the sixth batch of jets, Rein said.

But the company has faced similar challenges in the past. In December 2012, Lockheed Martin redoubled its efforts and delivered nine jets to the U.S. government.

Separately, Lockheed Martin and Pentagon officials have been working to finalize a contract valued at over $4 billion for an eighth batch of jets and ensure it has the support of the various international partners affected.

The eighth batch of 43 jets is due to include aircraft for the U.S. military, Italy, Israel, Norway, Britain, and Japan. An agreement was expected weeks ago, but is now likely to be announced last this week or early next.

[Coati]

Contract for LRIP-8 has been agreed upon. Price per jet further down. LRIP-8 is the first increase in production, after the stabilization in LRIP-5 and 6( for four years LRIP 4-7 production was lingering around 32-36 planes per year). LRIP-9 will see further increase in production (57) while for LRIP-10 >100 aircraft will be produced. LRIP-8 will consist of 19 F-35A for the USAF, 6 F-35B for the USMC, 4 F-35C for USN, 4 B for the UK, 2 A for Italy, 2 for Israel, 2 for Norway and 4 for Japan.


Lockheed Martin : Exclusive: Lockheed, Pentagon reach $4 billion deal for more F-35 jets

Lockheed Martin Corp (>> Lockheed Martin Corporation) and U.S. defense officials have reached agreement on the terms of a contract worth about $4 billion for an eighth batch of 43 F-35 fighter jets, sources familiar with the deal said on Thursday.
Lockheed Martin Corp (>> Lockheed Martin Corporation) and U.S. defense officials have reached agreement on the terms of a contract worth about $4 billion for an eighth batch of 43 F-35 fighter jets, sources familiar with the deal said on Thursday.

The contract will lower the cost of the radar-evading warplane by about 3 percent and includes jets to be built for the U.S. military, Britain and other U.S. allies, according to the sources, who were not authorized to speak publicly.

The cost of the U.S. Air Force model of the plane, which accounts for 27 of the 43 aircraft, will go down by nearly 4 percent, said one of the sources.

http://www.4-traders.com/LOCKHEED-MARTI ... -19249992/

[PilotoRico]

Planned Quantities*
USAF 1,763 F-35As
USN 260 F-35Cs
USMC 340 F-35Bs/80 F-35Cs
U.K. RAF/RN 138 F-35Bs
Italy 60 F-35As/30 F-35Bs
Netherlands 37 F-35As
Turkey 100 F-35As
Australia 100 F-35As
Norway 52 F-35As
Denmark 30 F-35As
Canada 65 F-35As
Israel 19 F-35As
S. Korea 40 F-35As
Japan 42 F-35As
*Based on current programs of record.

I am among several Danish guys at their FB forum surprised to see the 30 aircraft order for Denmark, as they officially stll have to decide what will be the replacement aircraft for their F-16's! Still in the running are Boeing F-18E/F, Typhoon and.... F-35!

[Coati]

Denmark participates in the JSF program, in whih every participant indicated their intended number of aircraft to be acquired. The list you mention is a planned production quantity list, not a firm order list, and subject to change.

Of course the purchase decision still has to be made by Denmark, but the fact they are participating as a level 3 partner since 1999 (?) gives a strong indication they favor the F-35. Not very surprising. The only participating countries out of 9 countries which did not place an F-35 order yet, are Canada and Denmark (Turey will finalize first order later this year/early next year), all other participating countries ordered F-35s already (and 3 countries placed FMS orders on top, Israel, S-Korea and Japan).

[tally]

12-5042/LF delivered to Luke AFB, Oct 24.

[wamovements]

fy 11 or fy12 for 5042?

[raameagle]

FY12

Regards

[tally]

FY12 it is indeed.

[ Post made via Mobile Device ]

[Coati]

Actually this should be the first LRIP-6 aircraft which was delivered to the DoD last week, as mentioned in a Reuters news article this week.

[ Post made via Mobile Device ]

[tally]

CF-18 (NJ-113) first flight last week. Not sure on exact date but will try to find out.

[ Post made via Mobile Device ]

[Coati]

And the next order seems to be in for LM:

Today in Jeruzalem Post:

Despite tensions with US, Israel to purchase second batch of F-35 fighter jets

The move came after the previous Israeli government decided that the air force may buy up to three F-35 squadrons. Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon and US Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel finalized the terms of Israel's purchase of a second squadron of F-35 fighter jets in recent days
----
Israel already has 19 F-35A on order, which will be build in LRIP-8 (2 a/c), 9 (7 a/c) and 10 (10 a/c).

No further details about the number of aircraft or delivery dates. (a "squadron" seems to be around 20 a/c, my guess is first delivery from LRIP-10 on)

http://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/Politi ... ets-380035

Edit: some more details here:
http://www.jerusalemonline.com/news/pol ... -u.s.-9159