US military tests of a new software update for the F-35 stealth fighter jet
show that the upgrade is immature. In its report, the military found five
flaws in the aircraft despite the upgrade.
Reports on testing by the US military will be published soon. Bloomberg has
seen the 13-page report. "The fighter jet operator discovered flaws in
weapons, fusion, communications and navigation, cybersecurity and targeting
processes, following the upgrade," the leaked report said.
"The software required further modification and additional time and
resources, which led to delays," the report said.
Lockheed Martin's sophisticated and expensive fighter jet relies heavily on
onboard software that includes more than eight million lines of code.
"Upgrades do not adhere to published best practices and consistently fail to
deliver the capabilities contained in their master schedule," the leaked
assessment report added.
This upgrade is designed to provide the F-35 fighter jets with new
capabilities and increase their computing power and memory.
It should also allow the fighter jets to carry new types of munitions, such
as the AIM-9X Block II air-to-air missile, all-weather Small Diameter Bomb
II or radar-killing AARGM-ER missiles, and even the B-61 nuclear bomb.
"However, the new process often creates stability problems and/or affects
other functions, as was found by active military units which frequently
report critical war shortages," the leaked document added.
The report blames many issues on inadequate funding resulting in
insufficient comprehensive testing to ensure unintentional flaws are not
embedded in software prior to delivery.
The cost of upgrading, according to a Bloomberg report, has reached $14
billion. The US Department of Defense's F-35 Program Office has so far
declined to comment on this information, saying it will comment once the
report is officially published.
The F-35, touted by arms manufacturer Lockheed Martin as one of the most
advanced fighter jets ever developed, has been plagued by a series of
technical problems and a series of development delays, cost overruns and
malfunctions.
Most recently, the F-35C Lightning II had an accidental landing on the deck
of the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson during exercises in the South China
Sea. The incident left seven US Navy personnel injured and the fighter jet
crashed into the sea.
In early January, South Korea grounded all F-35 jets it bought from the US
after a malfunctioning landing gear forced pilots to make a risky belly
landing near a military base in the west of the country.
