According to Reuters html on the 28th, in early September this year, the US discovered that a Chinese part was used in the F-35 fighter jet, and then suspended the delivery of F-35 on the grounds of "safety considerations". After a month, the US approved the purchase of F-35 fighter jets, and the US Department of Defense also stated that there is no need to replace the fighter jets that have been produced.
(US F-35 fighter jets are known as the "world fighter jets")
flew for 500,000 hours without any faults. The US approved the delivery of
In early September, the Pentagon of the United States said that it was discovered that used alloy materials from China in the engines in the F-35 fighter jets, which does not comply with the US procurement law. Although the supplier responsible for the production of the fighter jets said that the alloy material has been used in the fighter jet since 2003, and the material has been magnetized in the United States and will not pose a threat to the United States. But Pentagon still stated that will suspend the delivery of F-35 fighter jets for "security considerations". In a statement, the F-35 fighter jet company said a total of 18 fighter jets were detained at that time.
According to US media, the US side has ended its investigation into the incident. The US Department of Defense has agreed to continue purchasing F-35 fighter jets containing Chinese alloys. Deputy Minister Lapland has signed a national security exemption agreement, which means that F-35 fighter jets can continue to be delivered and there is no need to replace parts of the already produced fighter jets.
=Lapland said that according to the agreement, the US will receive 126 fighter jets by the end of 2023. The F-35 project office also stated that the component has no technical defects and will not pose any security risks to US fighter jets. In the delivered fighter jet, has flight time exceeding 500,000 hours, and no incident of failure of the part has occurred.
(Lapland said it had signed an exemption agreement and could continue to deliver F35 fighter jets)
The US "de-Sinicization" wave is difficult to achieve
In fact, the United States approved the supplier to use Chinese parts in F-35 fighter jets ten years ago. There are more than 1,700 suppliers of this fighter jet, and they come from all over the world. Honeywell said that the decision to suspend delivery of in the United States has plagued the F-35 fighter jets by cost overruns and delays. The company also said that has found a replacement for Chinese alloy and will be used in the production of new fighter jets in November.
Although the US said it had found a replacement, according to the US's global procurement model, The US could not distinguish in which link Chinese manufacturing appeared. There is also a precedent for . Previously, the US used the circuit board produced by a British manufacturing company in the F-35 fighter jet, but the company was acquired by China in 2013. In an era of deepening globalization, the US will definitely find "Made in China" in various weapons in the future.
In addition, the United States plans to sell 153 of the fighter jets to countries around the world this year, including eight countries including the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, etc., and only 88 are currently delivered. If the US suspends the use of Chinese parts, it will cause delays in the production of fighter jets, making it unable to deliver fighter jets on time.
(The samarium-cobalt magnet used in the F-35 fighter is made in China)
To track the source of materials, the United States has formulated a new plan
The relevant provisions of the US Procurement Law clearly state that in some projects, the use of metal or alloy materials produced in specific countries is prohibited, and China is among them. In addition, The US side has always wanted to get rid of its dependence on China in rare earth resources, which is also the main reason why the US side wants to ban the use of this part.
After this incident, the US Department of Defense stated that this exposed some vulnerabilities in the United States in the supply chain, and cannot clearly know the source of the material. There is news that . The United States has also formulated a "supply chain lighting" plan. aims to use technological means to track the source of raw materials in real time, and to clarify whether these materials come from their "potential rival" countries.
However, this series of actions by the US side to "de-Sinicize" will further increase its raw material costs under the influence of the current epidemic and inflation in the United States, which is inconsistent with its fundamental goal of reducing costs. In fact, the US's practice of constantly suppressing and slandering parts made in China under the pretext of rare earth resources, exposed its ambitions and attempts to hype the "China threat theory".
