Israel’s Air Force announced a temporary halt in training flights for its stealth fighter F-35 aircraft on Saturday, following US concerns over defects in pilot ejection systems.
The IDF said in a statement that it will carry out inspections of the aircraft and any individual F-35 operations will be conducted by special authorization from the Air Force Commander Maj.-Gen. Tomer Bar.
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The Israeli announcement followed a US notice on Friday of possible defects in the explosive cartridges in pilot ejection systems aboard three US military aircraft, including the F-35.
The jet’s manufacturer, Lockheed Martin, said in a statement that it “continues to work closely with the Joint Program Office and customers to ensure safe and effective operations for the F-35 fleet. We are assisting with seat inspections where appropriate to support recent JPO and service direction.”
Seat manufacturer Martin-Baker said in a statement that the problem came from a “gap” in the manufacturing process and that this has been “addressed and changed.”
The US report said that since the problem was first discovered, the US had tested 2,700 F-35 ejection seat cartridges and found three failures. Individual US jets will return to service after passing inspection.