The Department of Defense's fleet of F-35 aircraft is only capable of carrying out missions slightly more than 50% of the time due to slow maintenance times, according to a report on Thursday from the Government Accountability Office.
The United States has fielded about 450 F-35 aircraft and plans to procure nearly 2,500 in the coming decades at an estimated life-cycle cost of more than $1.7 trillion, though the GAO report found these maintenance challenges negatively affect the readiness of these aircraft.
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Some of the problems the GAO report laid out include a lack of access to technical data for repair delays, inadequate maintenance-related training, heavy reliance on contractors, a lack of spare parts at installations and support equipment, and a change to funding prioritization.
The military and defense contractors provide support for the F-35 program, but the dual tracks have contributed to some of the problems laid out in the report. Another aspect the report touched on is the Pentagon’s desire for more government control over F-35 sustainment without determining specifically what the government and contractors’ roles should be, as well as obtaining the technical data necessary to support that mix.
The report also mentioned a growing backlog of aircraft that need repairs.
In October 2017, the GAO found that it took an average of 172 days to repair an F-35 component, which, at the time, was more than twice the program’s 60-to-90-day objectives. It had gone down to 131 days as of August 2020 but went up to 141 days as of February this year.
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This report came days after a pilot ejected from an F-35 that went unaccounted for during a roughly 24-hour period. A debris field was located in South Carolina, two hours northeast of Joint Base Charleston, where the Marine Corps pilot took off. An investigation is continuing.
"The mishap is currently under investigation, and we are unable to provide additional details to preserve the integrity of the investigative process," the joint base said in a post on Monday evening. "We would like to thank all of our mission partners, as well as local, county, and state authorities, for their dedication and support throughout the search and as we transition to the recovery phase."