Pentagon firming F-35 Block 4

The Pentagon is in the process of firming up what needs to be "baked" into the Block 4 software for the F-35. They're concerned about costs of upgrades after the 3F software, and into the 2020s. The first F-35A squadron will achieve IOC in August of next year. That will consist of 12-14 aircraft, in the 3i configuration, and will require updates to 3F and 4 to reach FOC.

As the Pentagon decides what new combat capabilities to “bake” into the Block 4 configuration of the Lockheed Martin F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, there is concern about planned upgrades sliding beyond Block 3F, and about the overall price tag as those modifications are rolled out in the early 2020s.

“We’ve seen programmes where our appetite is more than we can afford,” Maj Gen Jeffrey Harrigian, who heads the US Air Force F-35 integration office, said at a recent Mitchell Institute event in Washington, DC.

The air force expects its first squadron of 12 to 14 A-model F-35s in the baseline Block 3i configuration to be ready for combat in a limited capacity by August 2016. But each aircraft will need to be modified to achieve “full warfighting capability” with the full suite of armaments and improvements provided in the subsequent Block 3F and Block 4 upgrades.

www.flightglobal.com...

How come I get this image coming into my head for some reason..
Blue Screen of Death

Not sure if this is old news, but when i saw it, i thought of you Zaphod.

And i'm impressed. I know very little about this topic but i got a buddy in the AirForce working as an aircraft mechanic. So i'm interested.


Oh yeah the video... it's on LiveLeak.

F-35B Operational Test Trials

a reply to: southernplayalistic

They've released several videos today about the testing but I haven't had a chance to watch them.

Thanks!

those birds are burning the deck.

a reply to: drwire

It's expected. Part of this testing is seeing how the new deck coating stands up to continuous flight operations. So far it's doing well. The surface layer is showing heat effects but the under layers aren't.

According to the Pentagon, two must haves with Block 4 are improved EOTS, and what they're calling Big SAR. Both are expected to be requirements for the upgrade.