A lack of spare parts and trained engineers has hampered the combat ability of the UK’s F-35 fighter jets, a report has said.
The findings of the National Audit Office (NAO) come as one of the warplanes is due to leave Thiruvananthapuram airport in southern India, where it made an emergency landing. Engineers have taken nearly four weeks to fix a technical problem and get the jet airborne again.
The $115 million ($155.7 million) Lockheed Martin-made stealth jet, one of the world’s most advanced fighter aircraft, was on a regular sortie over the Arabian Sea last month when it encountered bad weather and could not return to the Royal Navy’s flagship aircraft carrier, HMS Prince of Wales.
"Ongoing issues facing the UK programme include personnel shortages across a range of roles, most significantly in engineering posts," the NAO said.
There is a “difficulty in securing spare parts and support equipment from the global programme”, which has meant “poor aircraft availability rates, resulting in fewer flying hours for pilots” than the UK Ministry of Defence wants, the report added.
The ministry has so far spent £11 billion on its F-35 programme. That is more than it has reported and more than it anticipated it would spend at the time of the 2013 business case, the NAO’s report said.
According to the spending watchdog, the estimated whole-life cost of the programme to the UK will be £71 billion – considerably higher than the £18.76 billion the ministry publicly reported.
“The F-35 programme offers significantly improved capability and considerable economic benefits to the UK,” said Gareth Davies, head of the NAO. “But the capability benefits are not being fully realised due to delays, infrastructure gaps and personnel shortages. The [ministry] now needs to decide where to prioritise its resources to improve capability in a way that maximises the full benefits of the F‑35 programme to the UK.”
The UK operates 37 of the F-35B variant of the aircraft, which has vertical take-off and landing capabilities, and the jets are also used on the Royal Navy’s HMS Queen Elizabeth aircraft carrier. The UK has committed to an initial batch of 48 jets, and plans to have 138 in service until 2069. The UK also plans to buy 12 F-35A jets, to carry nuclear weapons.
The NAO said delivery of the first batch is “behind schedule due to a combination of financial pressure and problems with the global programme”.
This means the ministry expects to declare full operating capability by the end of 2025, two years later than planned, and with several gaps against its initial requirements. That means plans to equip the aircraft with important weapons, including the integration of UK-developed missiles, and to assure the ministry the aircraft retains its stealth capabilities, have been pushed back until the 2030s.
The report comes as the UK and other Nato states plan to increase their military spending in response to pressure by the US and concerns about the risk of further Russian aggression in Europe.
A representative for the ministry said the programme “continues to operate within its approved budget” and that, despite delays, the UK would have two full squadrons of F-35 fighter jets ready for deployment by the end of this year.
The ministry added that the decision to buy 12 F-35As would cut the cost of each plane by 25 per cent.
The stranded military aircraft has been the subject of AI-generated memes in India. Kerala's tourism department published an image of the aircraft on the tarmac, surrounded by coconut trees, in a post with a fictitious five-star review.
“Kerala is such an amazing place, I don’t want to leave. Definitely recommend,” it said.
