The F-35 program office is considering an option to keep some F-35s in the U.S. fleet with Block 2B software, instead of sending them for an expensive upgrade to newer standards, Stephen Trimble reports.
Program manager Vice Adm Matt Winter says each of the aircraft requires 150-160 modifications to be on par with Block 3 standard. More than one hundred jets are now flying on Block 2B code.
Those that are not chosen for the modifications will be kept for training purposes. Similar to what the U.S. Air Force does for a small number of F-22s.