EXCLUSIVE - Pentagon To Take F-35B Jet Off 'Probation'-Sources -- CNBC/Reuters
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Pentagon is preparing to lift a "probation" imposed last year on the Marine Corps version of Lockheed Martin Corp's new F-35 fighter jet after the "B" model made progress on key technical issues, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter.
U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta may announce the move as soon as Friday during a visit to Naval Air Station Patuxent River in southern Maryland, where some 700 government and industry testers have been evaluating the F-35B model.
The B model can take off from shorter runways and can land vertically, like a helicopter.
The decision would remove a black cloud that has hung over the $382 billion Joint Strike Fighter program since then-Defense Secretary Robert Gates announced last January that the B-model faced significant testing problems and should be canceled unless its issues could be ironed out during a two-year probation.
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Update #1: Lockheed’s F-35B Should Be Off ‘Probation,’ Marines Say -- Bloomberg Businesweek
Update #2: Panetta To Lift F-35B Probation at Pax River -- Aol Defense
Update #3: F-35B may soon be freed from 'probation' list -- Digital Beaufort
My Comment: The F-35B can be taken off probation, but the problems and concerns will still there.
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