The War Department's inspector general said the U.S. fleet of F-35s was available to fly only about half the time because of poor maintenance by Lockheed Martin, which builds the world's most advanced stealth fighter.
A report released Friday by the Office of the Inspector General found the average availability rate of F-35s during fiscal 2024 was just 50%, 17 percentage points below the minimum performance requirement.
The watchdog said that was partly because the Pentagon, under the Biden administration, "did not consistently hold Lockheed Martin accountable for poor performance related to F-35 sustainment.
"This occurred because the F-35 JPO [Joint Program Office] did not include aircraft readiness performance or other measurable contract requirements and did not enforce material inspection and government property reporting requirements in the AVS [air vehicle sustainment] contract," the report stated.
The inspector general also found Lockheed was paid about $1.7 billion without any economic adjustment, even though "the aircraft were not available to fly half of the time" and maintenance shortfalls meant the jets did not meet "minimum military service requirements."
A Lockheed spokesperson reportedly said the company earlier this year created a "plan to address the root cause of F-35 availability issues," including acquiring additional spare parts and improving "maintenance practices."
The spokesperson said a new sustainment contract incentivizes Lockheed to improve "fleet readiness."
The F-35 program is the Pentagon's largest acquisition effort.
The report estimated the total cost to buy, operate, and sustain the fighter over its lifetime at more than $2 trillion.
Development and procurement account for $442 billion, while sustainment, also known as operating and support costs, makes up an additional $1.58 trillion.
Earlier this year, the Air Force requested 24 new F-35s in its 2026 budget proposal, down from 44 aircraft requested in 2025 and 51 in 2024.
Gen. David Allvin, the Air Force chief of staff, reportedly said the service plans to increase procurement once it can buy aircraft better suited to future conflicts.
"In the end, because we have limited financial resources, we need to make sure that the F-35s we buy have the capability to meet the pacing threat," he said.
"So some of the delays with respect to Block 4 and TR-3 weighed into decisions by the department."
In April, President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing a review of the Pentagon's weapons acquisition process, including assessments of major programs that might be behind schedule or facing cost overruns.
Michael Katz ✉
Michael Katz is a Newsmax reporter with more than 30 years of experience reporting and editing on news, culture, and politics.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.