F-35 looks to move past recent setbacks.

• Author: Parsons, Dan

Even in the infamously troubled history of the F-35 joint strike fighter, recent months have been particularly inauspicious for the most expensive weapon system development program in U.S. history.

The entire U.S. fleet of F-35s had its wings clipped for more than three weeks after the engine of an Air Force version of the jet caught fire prior to a June 23 training flight. The incident forced officials to ground the fleet and the aircraft missed several crucial international appearances in the United Kingdom, where the F-35 was supposed to make its international debut before foreign buyers who are critical to Lockheed's plan to reduce unit cost.

"Lockheed and the joint program office were enthusiastic about getting [the F-35] over there precisely to enhance the program in the eyes of foreign buyers," said Winslow Wheeler, director of the Straus Military Reform Project at the Project on Government Oversight, who has written extensively about the systemic problems with F-35.

Laura Siebert, a Lockheed F-35 spokeswoman, said Aug. 5 that the jet's absence at Farnborough did not reverberate negatively with international customers.

"It did not have any effect on potential sales or current sales or the promise for the future of the program," she said.

Wheeler strenuously disagreed with Lockheed's assessment.

"For either of them to say they where not embarrassed by it not showing up is self-contradictory. Everyone else thinks it was a great embarrassment for the program," he said.

An initial Defense Department assessment of the engine failure determined the malfunction was unique to that aircraft, but Wheeler was dubious without third-party review of the fleet.

"We don't know yet if this problem in the engine was a one-off or systemic," he said. "We won't know that until we have an analysis by an objective party."

The fire, which caused irreparable damage to the jet before the pilot was able to shut down the engine and safely escape, temporarily halted contract negotiations on the eighth lot of aircraft to be purchased by the U.S. government. Lockheed officials were expecting the most recent low-rate initial production agreement for 43 aircraft to be finalized this summer.

Siebert said the negotiations had resumed and should still be finalized by summer's end.

"We are currently in negotiations and hope they will be complete by the end of summer," she told National Defense. "It might push into September, but I think we are in the final trenches. We hope to complete it very soon."

The Pentagon's F-35 joint program office confirmed the negotiations were ongoing and had not been affected by the grounding.

"Contract negotiations between the F-35 Joint Program Office and Lockheed Martin continue to move forward," JPO spokesman Joe DellaVedova said in an emailed statement. "We're focused on reducing aircraft costs and getting a fair and reasonable price for the government. ... Once we reach agreements in principle and finalize the contract with Lockheed Martin, more details will be...