WASHINGTON, D.C., USA — U.S. military fixed-wing fighter and attack jets are critical to achieving and maintaining air dominance during combat operations and are vital to homeland defense.
But the tactical aircraft mission-capable rate—the percentage of total time when the planes can fly and perform at least one mission—is falling short, according to a recent report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO).
"If these mission-capable rates are not meeting established goals currently, it raises a lot of very significant and disturbing questions about the ability to meet goals during a time of conflict," said GAO Defense Capabilities and Management team Director Diana Maurer.
Of particular concern is the F-35 Lightning II joint strike fighters, which have failed to meet readiness goals for six years straight, despite the over $12 billion spent on operations and maintenance, according to the report.
The GAO said the F-35A, the fighter variant used by the US Air Force, the F-35B used by the Marine Corps and the F-35C used by the Navy, all failed to meet their goals over all six years.
Also failing to meet goals for all six years was the Air Force F-22 Raptor.
The Navy's F/A-18 E and F Super Hornets only met their goals one out of six years.
Maurer, in an interview Monday with 13News Now, said a number of factors are at work.
"Sometimes there's a lack of maintainers available. Sometimes they have to cannibalize aircraft from time to time to meet operational needs. There's a whole host of problems that we've identified in some of our prior work," she said.
Of 49 aircraft examined, only four met their annual mission-capable goal in most of the years between 2011 and 2021.