The US Air Force has grounded about a third of its F-35 fighter jets after several incidents of irregular oxygen in the aircraft was reported. However, Lockheed Martin, the makers of the fighter jets will go ahead of its plan of exhibiting the same jets at the Paris air show this month.
A fleet of the F-35 fighter jets has been grounded by the US Air Force on grounds of issues related to the oxygen level in the aircraft. The officials have announced that pilot's oxygen supply in the aircraft is irregular, which caused pilots facing hypoxia symptoms, which means a shortage of oxygen in the brain, The Guardian reported.
The report states that the Luke Air Force Base, which houses the 56th Fighter Wing has called off its operation of local flying due to five incidents that had the pilots in the F-35A Lightning II aircraft, experiencing oxygen deprivation. Notably, the base conducts 25 flying missions on weekdays.
The Pentagon spokesperson, Captain Mark Graff, has also stated that the incidents took place in the time span from May 2 until Thursday. Moreover, for all the incidents it was found that the designated oxygen system of the aircraft functioned properly and the jets could also land safely.
In similar reports it has been said that the makers of the F-35 fighter jets, Lockheed Martin plans to exhibit the aircraft at the Paris Air Show that is scheduled to take place this month, inspite of the concerns that that have been reported, BBC reported. However, a representative of the company has stated that it will cooperate with the US air force to address the issue with full cooperation.
It must be mentioned here that for Lockheed, has the world's largest base of F-35, where it trains pilots from all over the world. Moreover, about 35 percent of its income is generated by the F-35 account alone.
