F-35 Fleet Readiness Hits Record Low; $13.7B Support Reset Announced
Marine Corps Lt. Gen. Gregory Masiello, head of the F-35 Joint Program Office, testified before a Senate subcommittee that the F-35 fleet’s readiness has hit an all-time low, with only one in four jets fully mission capable. The sustainment system, designed for 700-800 aircraft, now supports over 1,300. Masiello announced a $13.7 billion Global Support Solution Reset through 2031 to address spare parts, depot capacity, and maintenance. Block 4 modernization is also years behind schedule, and the Pentagon has implemented only 14 of 46 GAO recommendations since 2014.
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F-35 program chief warns fleet has outgrown its support system amid record-low readiness
Marine Corps Lt. Gen. Gregory Masiello, head of the F-35 Joint Program Office, testified before the Senate Airland Subcommittee on Tuesday, warning that the F-35 fleet has grown to over 1,300 aircraft, far exceeding the sustainment system originally designed for 700-800 jets. His testimony follows a Government Accountability Office report that found only one in four F-35s were fully mission capable, the lowest on record. Masiello blamed years of underbuying spare parts, not systemic issues, and outlined a $13.7 billion Global Support Solution Reset through 2031. He confirmed the Marine Corps accepted six F-35Bs without radar, and acknowledged software issues and canopy lifespan problems. The Block 4 modernization is delayed, with 22 of 55 capabilities fielded. Masiello said the program would revise contracts to include meaningful incentives and penalties, as GAO has long urged.
Air Force TimesF-35 Program Chief Warns Fleet Has Outgrown Support System Amid Record-Low Readiness
Marine Corps Lt. Gen. Gregory Masiello, head of the F-35 Joint Program Office, testified before the Senate Airland Subcommittee that the F-35 fleet has outgrown its sustainment system, originally designed for 700-800 aircraft but now supporting over 1,300. This testimony follows a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report finding only one in four F-35s were fully mission capable (FMC), the lowest on record. Masiello attributed low readiness to years of underbuying spare parts, not a systemic failure, and announced a $13.7 billion Global Support Solution Reset through 2031. He confirmed the Marine Corps accepted six F-35Bs without radar, awaiting a newer APG-85 model. Modernization delays persist, with the full Block 4 suite years behind schedule due to power and cooling limitations. Masiello pledged to revise contracts with meaningful incentives and penalties, though the Pentagon has implemented only 14 of 46 GAO sustainment recommendations since 2014.
Navy TimesF-35 Program Chief Warns Fleet Has Outgrown Support System Amid Record-Low Readiness
During a June 24, 2026, Senate hearing, Marine Corps Lt. Gen. Gregory Masiello, head of the F-35 Joint Program Office, admitted that the F-35 fleet of over 1,300 aircraft has overwhelmed its sustainment system originally designed to support only 700-800 jets. This admission follows a GAO report finding just 25% of F-35s were fully mission capable (FMC), the lowest on record. Masiello cited years of underbuying spare parts and software/canopy issues as key factors, and disclosed the Marine Corps accepted six F-35Bs without radars. The program has launched a $13.7 billion Global Support Solution Reset through 2031. The Block 4 modernization effort, once due in 2026, is now years behind, with only 22 of 55 planned capabilities fielded. The Pentagon has implemented just 14 of 46 GAO sustainment recommendations since 2014.
Marine Corps TimesF-35 Program Chief Warns Fleet Has Outgrown Its Support System Amid Record-Low Readiness
In a Senate hearing, Marine Corps Lt. Gen. Gregory Masiello, head of the F-35 Joint Program Office, acknowledged that the F-35 fleet has outgrown its sustainment system, originally designed for 700-800 aircraft, as the fleet now exceeds 1,300. This comes after a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report found only one in four F-35s were fully mission capable (FMC), with overall mission capable rates dropping from 67% in fiscal 2021 to 44%. Masiello attributed low readiness to years of underbuying spare parts, not a systemic failure, and announced a $13.7 billion Global Support Solution Reset through 2031. He also confirmed the Marine Corps accepted six F-35Bs without radar, and that the Block 4 modernization program is years behind schedule, with only 22 of 55 planned capabilities fielded. The Pentagon has implemented only 14 of 46 GAO sustainment recommendations since 2014.
Navy TimesF-35 Program Chief Warns Fleet Has Outgrown Support System Amid Record-Low Readiness
Marine Corps Lt. Gen. Gregory Masiello, head of the F-35 Joint Program Office, testified before a Senate subcommittee that the F-35 fleet's readiness has fallen to its lowest recorded level. He acknowledged the sustainment system, originally designed for 700-800 aircraft, is overwhelmed by the current fleet of over 1,300 jets. A recent Government Accountability Office (GAO) report found only 25% of F-35s are fully mission capable, with overall mission capable rates dropping from 67% to 44%. Masiello attributed the decline to chronic underbuying of spare parts and increased demand, not a systemic failure, and detailed a $13.7 billion 'Global Support Solution Reset' through 2031 to address spares, depots, and maintenance. He also confirmed six F-35Bs were accepted without radar and that the Block 4 modernization is years behind schedule, with only 22 of 55 planned capabilities fielded. The program faces calls for better contractor accountability and has implemented only 14 of 46 GAO sustainment recommendations since 2014.
Navy TimesF-35 Program Chief Warns Fleet Has Outgrown Support System Amid Record-Low Readiness
Marine Corps Lt. Gen. Gregory Masiello, head of the F-35 Joint Program Office, testified before a Senate subcommittee that the F-35 fleet's readiness has hit an all-time low, with only one in four jets fully mission capable according to a recent GAO report. Masiello attributed the downturn to a sustainment system designed for 700-800 aircraft now supporting over 1,300, along with years of underbuying spare parts. The program is launching a $13.7 billion Global Support Solution Reset through 2031 to address spares, depot capacity, and maintenance. Modernization is also behind schedule: only 22 of 55 planned Block 4 capabilities have been fielded, delayed partly by power and cooling limitations. The hearing noted the Pentagon has implemented only 14 of 46 GAO sustainment recommendations since 2014. Masiello said contracts would be revised to include meaningful incentives and penalties for Lockheed Martin.
Marine Corps TimesF-35 program chief warns fleet has outgrown its support system amid record-low readiness
Marine Corps Lt. Gen. Gregory Masiello, head of the F-35 Joint Program Office, testified before the Senate Airland Subcommittee that the fighter's sustainment system was built for 700-800 aircraft but now supports over 1,300, driving record-low readiness. A recent GAO report found only one in four F-35s were fully mission capable (FMC). Masiello blamed years of underbuying spare parts and software/canopy issues, not a broken system. He acknowledged the Marine Corps accepted six F-35Bs without radar. The program launched a $13.7 billion Global Support Solution Reset through 2031 targeting spares, depot capacity, and maintenance. Block 4 modernization is delayed, with only 22 of 55 capabilities fielded. The GAO has made 46 sustainment recommendations since 2014; only 14 have been implemented. Masiello said contracts would be revised with 'meaningful incentives and penalties' but would not commit to closing specific GAO recommendations.
Air Force TimesF-35 Program Chief Warns Fleet Has Outgrown Its Support System Amid Record-Low Readiness
Marine Corps Lt. Gen. Gregory Masiello, head of the F-35 Joint Program Office, testified before the Senate Airland Subcommittee that the F-35 fleet's readiness has fallen to its lowest level on record, with only one in four jets fully mission capable according to a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report. Masiello blamed the crisis on a sustainment system originally designed for 700-800 aircraft now supporting over 1,300 operational jets, and years of underbuying spare parts. The program is defending a $13 billion fiscal 2027 request for 85 new aircraft and Block 4 modernization, which is years behind schedule with only 22 of 55 planned capabilities fielded. Masiello acknowledged the Marine Corps accepted six F-35Bs without radar, and cited software issues and canopy lifespan as problems. The program launched a $13.7 billion Global Support Solution Reset through 2031 targeting spares, depot capacity, and maintenance, while pledging to revise contracts with meaningful incentives and penalties.
Military TimesF-35 Program Chief Warns Fleet Has Outgrown Support System Amid Record-Low Readiness
During a Senate hearing on June 24, 2026, Marine Corps Lt. Gen. Gregory Masiello, head of the F-35 Joint Program Office, warned that the F-35 fleet's readiness has fallen to its lowest level on record. A recent Government Accountability Office (GAO) report found only one in four F-35s were fully mission capable (FMC). Masiello attributed the decline to a sustainment system originally built for 700-800 aircraft now supporting over 1,300 jets, compounded by years of underbuying spare parts. The overall mission capable rate dropped from 67% in fiscal 2021 to 44%, though Masiello cited 56% using a different methodology. He confirmed the Marine Corps accepted six F-35Bs without radar. The Block 4 modernization is years late, with only 22 of 55 planned capabilities fielded. The program launched a $13.7 billion Global Support Solution Reset and plans to revise contracts with penalties for Lockheed Martin. Masiello cited software issues and canopy lifespans as key problems.
Air Force TimesF-35 program chief warns fleet has outgrown its support system amid record-low readiness
Marine Corps Lt. Gen. Gregory Masiello, head of the F-35 Joint Program Office, testified before the Senate Airland Subcommittee that the F-35 fleet has outgrown its sustainment system, which was originally designed to support 700 to 800 aircraft but now must serve over 1,300. The hearing follows a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report that found only one in four F-35s were fully mission capable, with overall mission capable rates falling from 67% in fiscal 2021 to 44%. Masiello put the mission capable rate at 56%, attributing the gap to methodology differences. He confirmed the Marine Corps has accepted six F-35Bs with no radar installed. Masiello blamed underbuying of spare parts as the fleet grew, not a systemic failure. The program has launched a $13.7 billion Global Support Solution Reset through 2031 targeting spares, depot capacity, and maintenance plans. Block 4 modernization is delayed, with only 22 of 55 planned capabilities fielded. Masiello also stated the program will revise contracts to include 'meaningful incentives and penalties,' but only 14 of 46 GAO sustainment recommendations since 2014 have been implemented.
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