Lockheed Martin's Joint Strike Fighter Struggles to Take Off

At the Los Angeles Times, "F-35 fighter jet struggles to take off":

After a decade of administrative problems, cost overruns and technical glitches, the F-35 is still not ready for action.

Far beyond the electronic security gates and razor-wire topped fences, Col. Rod Cregier surveys a team of technicians busily readying a lithe F-35 fighter jet for its next test flight.

As the F-35 program director at the base, Cregier and his team play a crucial role in a nationwide military effort to get the high-tech jet ready for battle.
After a decade of administrative problems, cost overruns and technical glitches, the F-35 is still not ready for action. The program has consistently come under political attack even though the military considers it crucial to the nation's defense needs.

Cregier believes the program is finally on course and said he is convinced that the jet can successfully replace the military's aging fighter fleets — some 34 years old — though he does not downplay the significant challenges his team faces.

"This is an incredibly complex aircraft, the most complex aircraft ever built," Cregier said. "Getting it right isn't easy."

In the skies above the Mojave Desert, test pilots today are pushing the radar-evading F-35 to new heights and flying to ever-increasing speeds to uncover design flaws. Just last week, an F-35 launched a missile in mid-flight from its internal weapons bay for the first time in a test flight for the Air Force.

But problems constantly crop up. Twice this year alone, F-35s have been grounded after different parts failed.

More at the link.

Plus, some responses at the letters to the editor, at the Los Angeles Times, "Letters: No support for the F-35."

PHOTO CREDIT: Wikimedia.