U.S. Air Force studying ways to keep F-35 target date on track

By Andrea Shalal WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Air Force is studying ways to meet its August 2016 target for declaring the new Lockheed Martin Corp F-35 fighter jet ready for use in combat, despite an unexpected shortage of mechanics, a top Air Force general said on Thursday. Lieutenant General Stephen Hoog, assistant vice chief of staff of the Air Force, confirmed that the timeline was in jeopardy because congressional moves to block the retirement of the A-10 aircraft meant the Air Force would be unable to shift the required number of expert mechanics to the F-35 program. The $399 billion F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program is the Pentagon's costliest weapons program. Budget-driven delays in its use in combat would come on top of several years of delays triggered by technical issues and could force the Air Force to spend extra money to keep its current, aging fleet of fighters flying longer. Hoog said Air Force officials were trying to work out a compromise with lawmakers that would allow them to retire at least some of the A-10s, freeing up some mechanics, but could also adjust the number of mechanics needed to declare that the F-35 had reached an initial operational capability (IOC). "Right now, we're trying to figure out what the best way to get forward is, to keep the IOC timeline on line given the challenges we’re facing in the maintenance side of the house," Hoog said after a speech hosted by the Air Force Association. Hoog told reporters that the Air Force would need 800 to 1,100 mechanics or "maintainers" to take care of the initial squadron of new F-35 jets, training needs and jets owned by U.S. allies that were still based in the United States. Air Force Lieutenant General Chris Bogdan, the Pentagon's F-35 program chief, last week said the inability to retire the A-10 was a concern since the Air Force was counting on training experienced A-10 mechanics to help reach the total 1,100 mechanics needed for the F-35 milestone. He said it would take nine to 12 months longer to train new mechanics than retraining an already experienced mechanic. Hoog said the issue revealed growing strains on the Air Force as a result of recent budget cuts and the loss of 45,000 to 50,000 jobs since 2005. He said the Air Force urgently needed to replace key aircraft like aging refueling planes and bombers. He urged lawmakers to ease or reverse mandatory budget cuts that are due to resume in 2016, noting that it was getting more and more difficult for the Air Force to meet the many demands placed on it, even when factoring in reserve forces. (Reporting by Andrea Shalal; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)