U.S. F-35 fighter jets were available to fly only about half the time in 2024 due to maintenance shortcomings by Lockheed Martin (LMT.N), opens new tab, Bloomberg News reported on Tuesday, citing a government watchdog. The report, based on the findings from the Defense Department’s Office of the Inspector General, said the average availability rate of F-35s was 50% partly because the Pentagon did not consistently hold Lockheed Martin accountable for poor performance related to F-35 sustainment. The audit found that Pentagon paid Lockheed about $1.7 billion without any economic adjustment even though the aircraft were unavailable to fly about half the time and failed to meet minimum military service requirements, the report said.

Full story : U.S. F-35 fleet fell short of readiness targets, audit finds.