Pentagon Classifies Study of F-35 Jet’s Challenges in Pacific
- Lessons learned not being shared well with other services: GAO
- Jet seen as bolstering U.S. forces in case of Korea conflict
A U.S. military F-35B fighter jet conducts takeoff and landing exercises aboard the amphibious assault ship Wasp, which was deployed to the Sasebo base in southwestern Japan, in the western Pacific, on March 23, 2018.
Photographer: Kyodo News via Getty Images
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The Pentagon classified an assessment of the major challenges the Marine Corps encountered in deploying the U.S.’s first F-35 jets to the Pacific, according to a new Government Accountability Office report.
An unclassified version of the study released on Wednesday suggests the problems with the Lockheed Martin Corp. fighter -- which would bolster U.S. capabilities in case of a conflict with North Korea -- could be significant, touching on both critical software and supply chain issues.