THAT CAN’T HELP THE F-35’S READINESS ISSUES: Pentagon can’t track millions of F-35 spare parts, watchdog finds.

The government watchdog described the DoD’s records for F-35 parts as “outdated, inaccurate, and incomplete” and said “DoD has made minimal progress in attaining and maintaining accountability for F-35 parts” since issues were first brought to light seven years ago.

The report follows several audits since 2019 by the GAO and the Department of Defense Inspector General, which revealed numerous problems.

Unlike most aircraft, the F-35 program largely relies on a joint pool of spares – such as engines and tires – for the U.S. Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps, as well as international customers.

Maybe making the pool of spares “joint” leads to a lack of accountability.