Fighter F-35

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American F-35A cannons cannot hit the target

The F-35A fighter's true centering of the guns is unknown

The 2018 Office of the Director of Operational Tests and Evaluation (DOT&E) report, released Jan. 31, contains information that is not pleasing to the US military. We are talking about the accuracy of small arms available on the F-35A. It does not match the contract specification. According to the Pentagon's chief weapons tester, the existing deficiencies were identified in 2017, but they have not yet been corrected. The results of the tests performed in September 2018, he calls unacceptable.

When examining gun mounts on an American fighter, warps were revealed that lead to inaccuracies in muzzle alignment. For this reason, the true centering of the guns of the F-35A has not been precisely established. The test pilots of the aircraft are warned that the operation of the firing systems in the air-to-air mode is incorrect. Investigations into the results of failures have not yet been completed.

We are talking about the built-in 25-millimeter gun, which is equipped with the F-35A - the main and most massive version of this aircraft. This cannon is built into the hull of the fighter and covered with special curtains, which increases the level of stealth.

The DOT&E report has one more unpleasant detail. This concerns the state of operational readiness of aircraft supplied to the US armed forces. It turns out that this figure is only 60 percent. The report emphasizes that the past years have not brought significant changes. Combat readiness of 80 percent has not been achieved.

The document also indicates that the level of reliability and maintainability are far from the intermediate goals that are necessary to achieve the final requirement.

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