2023-06-13 15:21:00
This TR-3 improvement is required for the operation of the Block 4 version of the F-35 – the one ordered in particular by Belgium – and the tests will not be completed before next December, or even April 2024.
The planned halt in delivery of new fighters in the Technology Refresh 3 configuration means that the manufacturer, Lockheed Martin, may have to store dozens of planes produced at its factory in Fort Worth, Texas (southern United States). ), for much of the rest of the year, and possibly well into the spring of 2024, Defense News reported.
The validation of the TR-3 update, which includes a series of improvements aimed at giving the F-35 better screens, more computer memory and better processing power – was initially planned for last April. This upgrade is necessary to fuel the capabilities of the future Block 4 of the F-35 and allow the aircraft to carry more long-range precision weapons, improve its electronic warfare capabilities and provide better target recognition.
The TR-3 configuration validation schedule has slipped significantly over time and the Pentagon agency that manages the F-35 program, the Joint Program Office (JPO) now expects it to be ready. December at the earliest – and possibly as late as April 2024, a year behind the original schedule.
The JPO said in a statement Monday to Defense News that TR-3-related delays will in turn disrupt deliveries, forcing new fighters to be stockpiled in the meantime.
“Beginning this summer, F-35 aircraft rolling off the production line in a TR-3 configuration will not be accepted until the relevant combat capability has been validated, consistent with our user expectations,” JPO spokesman Russ Goemaere said in an email.
“The JPO and Lockheed Martin will ensure that these planes are stored securely until (plane acceptance) takes place,” he added.
Aircraft currently being built by Lockheed are built with the TR-3 upgrades installed and the first aircraft to this standard is due to roll off the production line at the end of July, Goemaere said.
Belgium ordered 34 F-35s in 2018 for an amount of 4.5 billion euros, to replace its aging F-16s. The first two – in principle in the TR-3 Block 4 configuration – should be delivered next December following leaving the factory in Fort Worth. The final assembly of the first, bearing the manufacturer number AY-01 (A meaning that it is an aircraft in version A, with conventional take-offs and landings and Y being the code assigned by Lockheed to Belgium) has started.
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