The U.S. Marine Corps has suspended F-35B operations at Marine Corps Air Station Yuma in Arizona due to “problems” with the fighter jet’s Autonomic Logistics Information System (ALIS), Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) said in a brief statement late June 22.
“I am in close communication with the Marine Corps and [the Defense Department’s F-35] joint program office as they work to identify the root cause of these issues and resolve them as quickly as possible,” said McCain, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee.
Yuma is home to the Green Knights, the Marine Corps’ first operational squadron of Lockheed Martin [LMT] F-35s. ALIS provides aircraft health and maintenance action information.
The news came a day after Luke Air Force Base in Arizona resumed flying its F-35As June 21, ending a grounding that began June 9 after five pilots experienced oxygen deprivation-like symptoms.
The Air Force said that since the cause of the hypoxia-like symptoms has not yet been determined, F-35 flights at Luke will be temporarily banned above 25,000 feet, where all the episodes occurred.
The Air Force said that maintenance and aircrew flight equipment procedures have been eliminated as possible causes of the problems at Luke, a training base with 55 F-35As.