America's proud F-35 fighter is once again in trouble. This year, Loma was supposed to produce 147 F-35s, but the U.S. military received only 97 of them and refused to receive 50. This situation is mainly due to the decline in the level of science and technology and industry in the United States. The F-35 is currently the only mass-produced fifth-generation stealth fighter in the United States, but the delivery of the TR-3 upgrade program has been delayed, and the large-scale upgrade project of the F-35 Block 4 has also been affected. The TR-3 stands for "Technology Update 3" and is designed to keep the F-35 advanced through continuous technological upgrades.
According to the original plan, Loma was supposed to start production of the F-35 upgraded to the TR-3 standard in April 2023. However, the fact is that it was not until July that the first aircraft of the TR-3 standard rolled off the assembly line at Fort Worth, Texas. Because the relevant software system has not yet been fully developed, these aircraft cannot be tested and accepted, which is one of the reasons why the US military refused to accept 50 F-35s. In addition, the TR-3 budget has been severely overrun, and the upgrade project has already cost $700 million more than planned.
At present, the TR-35 upgrade program for the F-3 has not only been delayed for more than a year, but due to software problems, the aircraft is still not able to fully use its combat effectiveness. This puts the F-35 fighter in a difficult situation again, and at the same time calls into question the level of American technology and industrial technology. The F-35 fighter's technical upgrade program is a complex and ambitious project, which includes updating the advanced AN APG-85 active phased array radar and upgrading a variety of sensor systems. However, the current technical upgrade of the F-35 is limited by the progress of the development of software systems.
The fighter is a joint research and development project of many countries, and in order to meet the needs of NATO allies, Loma also needs to develop special software to be compatible with the ** equipment of European allies, such as the "Meteor" air-to-air missile and the "Lance-3" small cruise missile. However, this will further increase the technical challenges of software system development. Currently, to achieve this integration, it is necessary to rely on the upgraded F-35 fighter hardware system of the TR-35. Thus, the delay of the TR-3 project has already had an impact on the overall development of the F-35 fighter. At the request of European allies, the F-35 also needs to integrate a large number of European ** ammunition.
Although the F-35 fighter is considered an advanced combat platform, successfully integrating the needs of the three branches of the U.S. Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps for fighter jets, this level of integration is still quite advanced at the moment. However, as the saying goes, there are gains and losses. Although the F-35 combines the needs of the three services, it also makes it a "generalist" aircraft, that is, it can handle a variety of tasks, but it lacks particularly outstanding expertise. Therefore, since the start of mass production, the machine has been constantly upgraded.
According to the latest plan of the US military, in addition to replacing the new phased array radar, the bomb magazine will also be modified to enhance its combat capability against the air and enable it to carry six air-to-air missiles. Overall, the F-35's technical upgrade program is large and complex, but these efforts are necessary and worthwhile in order to adapt to the changing needs of the battlefield and the requirements of various countries' allies. Although the F-35's hardware is ready, the current situation shows that the performance upgrade of the aircraft has encountered significant challenges, and it is embarrassing that the problem is in the software.
This situation is regrettable, especially considering that the United States was once the global leader in electronic computer technology, just as the flight control software of the F-22 fighter caused global envy and envy. However, the slow pace of development of the F-35 software led to delays and significant cost overruns for the entire project. In the face of such a result, one can't help but sigh that the United States has gone downhill in its once strongest field!