UPDATE 5-U.S. grounds entire F-35 fleet pending engine inspections

[unhappycamper]

http://in.reuters.com/article/2014/07/04/lockheed-fighter-idINL2N0PF02820140704



UPDATE 5-U.S. grounds entire F-35 fleet pending engine inspections
Fri Jul 4, 2014 1:21pm IST
By Andrea Shalal

WASHINGTON, July 3 (Reuters) - The U.S. military said it had grounded the entire fleet of 97 Lockheed Martin Corp F-35 fighter jets until completion of additional inspections of the warplane's single engine built by Pratt & Whitney, a unit of United Technologies Corp.

The Pentagon's F-35 program office, Air Force and Navy issued directives on Thursday ordering the suspension of all F-35 flights after a June 23 fire on an Air Force F-35A jet at Eglin Air Force Base in Florida.

The Pentagon said U.S. and industry officials had not pinpointed the cause of the fire, which occurred as a pilot was preparing for takeoff. The pilot was not injured.

The incident is the latest to hit the Pentagon's costliest weapons program, the $398.6 billion F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. It followed an in-flight oil leak that triggered mandatory fleetwide inspections of the jets last month.

[intaglio]

1. How many pilots will have to die or be crippled

before the Pentagon finally drops this lemon

[genwah]

2. Military liives are cheap. Defense contractor re-election campaign contributions are what count.