Two F-35B Lightning II aircraft with Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 121 at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni in Japan.Cpl. Aaron Henson/US Marine Corps
Warzone/The Drive: Marines Need Special Lightning Rods To Shield Their F-35s In Japan From Storms
Lightning strikes remain a serious danger to the stealthy fighter jets that could hamper their operations from bases without adequate protection.
Among a number of residual issues that remain with the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, the matter of the jet’s defenses against lightning strikes, or lack thereof, continues to be a particularly vexing issue. For the U.S. Marine Corps and its F-35B variant, thunderstorms are still such a problem that the service is buying special portable lightning rods to help shield the jets when they’re parked outside at bases that otherwise don’t have the necessary infrastructure, which includes Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni in Japan.
On Aug. 8, 2018, the Marines announced plans to purchase 14 lightning rods through a sole-source contract to LBA Technology, Inc. of Greenville, North Carolina. According to the contracting notice, which the service posted on FedBizOpps, this is the only company that makes systems that the U.S. Military’s main F-35 Joint Program Office has approved for use with the aircraft.
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Update: The F-35 Lightning fighter can't stand up to real lightning, so Marines ordered specialty rods to keep them from going up in flames (Business Insider)
WNU Editor: It makes one wonder if the F-35 can survive an EMP event?
Update #2: More F-35 problems? .... Is the F-35 In Trouble Again? (Jared Keller, Business Insider/Task & Purpose).
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