F-35 Delays due to upgrade problems
By Stephen Losey
Wednesday, Jul 19, 2023
WASHINGTON — Problems with the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter’s newest upgrades will cause the aircraft’s manufacturer to miss its 2023 delivery goal by up to roughly 50 jets, Lockheed Martin officials said Tuesday.
The delays could bring down Lockheed’s revenue for 2023 by hundreds of millions of dollars.
Lockheed originally planned to deliver between 147 and 153 fighters this year. But software problems with the upgrades known as Technology Refresh 3, or TR-3, are causing significant delays. The Pentagon announced in June that it would not accept newly built F-35s with TR-3 until the upgrades are completely ready.