Australia, Published Wednesday 5 December 2018 :
https://www.anao.gov.au/work/perfor...-fighter-introduction-service-and-sustainment
"Defence does not yet know the final purchase price of future Australian JSF aircraft, or their whole-of-life operating and support costs."
"The history of Defence acquisitions in Australia demonstrates that inadequate sustainment cost estimates at project approval have led to cost implications once the platform is in service. In 2016, the United States GAO described sustainment as the most significant cost driver for the program. In 2016, Defence informed the Australian Government that estimated support costs for the JSF aircraft ‘remain high and the economies of scale were not yet evident’, and in November 2018, Defence informed the ANAO that this advice remains current. "
"To sustain its JSF aircraft, Defence is dependent on a spare parts supply system that is not fully developed, and is currently experiencing shortages due to competition for parts as the global JSF aircraft fleet increases "
"...there is some doubt as to whether the current United States-based contracting arrangements for sustaining JSF aircraft are performance based"
"Defence informed the ANAO in October 2018 that where contracted performance requirements are not met, the F-35 JPO has the option of withholding payment from the contractor. Defence further advised that Australia does not have the option of withholding payment from the F-35 JPO. "
"An internal review, completed in mid-2018, of Defence’s management controls for transitioning the JSF aircraft into Australian service, identified a lack of confidence within Defence about the global support arrangements in the short term for JSF aircraft based outside of the United States of America "
"Defence is constrained in its ability to effectively manage some risks, including access to JSF spare parts due to limited global supply. Not all of the costs associated with Australia becoming a regional hub for JSF aircraft maintenance and warehousing were known by Defence when the project was approved in 2014. This is adding cost pressures to the project. "
"Defence has some concerns about the security of Australian data within ALIS and has been working with the F-35 JPO to develop a solution."
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http://aviationweek.com/defense/f-35-approved-start-formal-initial-operational-test-and-evaluation
“Formal (IOT&E) will start later this month,” a JPO spokesman said.
"The new timing matches a prediction made nearly two years ago by Michael Gilmore, who was then the military’s director for the office of test and evaluation. In his final report to Congress in January 2017, Gilmore predicted that IOT&E would not begin until the F-35 meets unspecified readiness criteria at the end of 2018. At the time, IOT&E was scheduled to start in August 2017. "
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