The U.S. Navy is trying to fix a vibration problem that F-35C Lightning II pilots have experienced during catapult launches of the new carrier-based fighter jet, a service official said March 28.
Rear Adm. DeWolfe “Chip” Miller III, director of the Navy’s air warfare division, said the glitch was found during recent flight tests at sea, and that potential solutions are being studied at Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division–Lakehurst in New Jersey.
“We don’t have the answers yet because the engineers” from Naval Air Systems Command, the F-35 joint program office and prime contractor Lockheed Martin [LMT] “are hard at work in coming up with solutions,” Miller testified before the House Armed Services Committee’s tactical air and land forces panel.
The Navy hopes to identify a fix in time to test it at sea this fall, Miller said in response to questioning from Rep. Jim Langevin (D-R.I.). One possible remedy involves a bar that holds a plane back when a catapult is put into tension. As the catapult fires, the bar releases. Engineers are trying to determine if releasing the bar sooner would reduce the vibration.
The Navy intends to begin fielding the F-35C in late 2018 or early 2019. The first deployment on an aircraft carrier is slated for 2021.