The Defense Department’s F-35 fleet remained grounded Friday, with the Air Force’s no-fly streak reaching 18 days.
A DoD spokeswoman said July 11 the Pentagon had not made a final decision on whether the F-35B would fly this weekend at the Royal International Air Tattoo in England, a major international air show. She also said DoD was not sure when a final decision would be made. Marine spokesman Capt. Richard Ulsh said Thursday DoD still planned on debuting the plane in England later this month, likely the Farnborough Air Show, another major airshow, the week of July 14.
It is rumored an engine fire caused the grounding, which is being investigated. The F135 engine is developed by Pratt & Whitney of United Technologies Corp. [UTX]. Lockheed Martin [LMT] develops the F-35 along with subcontractors BAE Systems and Northrop Grumman [NOC].