The Pentagon and United States F-35 Joint Program Office — the government's implementing agency for the production of F-35 aircraft — have reportedly grounded a "small number" of "higher-risk" F-35 aircraft until at least January.
Tuesday's news comes nearly two weeks after a Dec. 15 hover crash of F-35B aircraft, reportedly brought on by propulsion system issues.
For that incident, the hovering fighter jet spilled onto a Texas runway and then took a grounded nosedive on the airfield grounds.
Video of the F-35B crash at a Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base in Fort Worth can be seen here — along with the pilot's successful, on-the-ground ejection, which quickly went viral on social media.
Constructed with a single seat, single engine, and all-weather stealth technology, F-35 aircraft are intended to perform air-superiority and strike missions.
In its Tuesday statement to Defense News, the F-35 Joint Program Office confirmed it issued guidance as a result of the Dec. 15 incident.
However, the JPO declined to specify how many F-35s would be unable to fly in the coming weeks, according to Defense News.
"The F-35 Joint Program Office has issued a Time Compliance Technical Directive (TCTD) to restrict some aircraft, which have been evaluated to be of higher risk, from flight operations while the investigation into the mishap on Dec. 15 continues and until procedures can be developed for their return to flight," the JPO statement read.
"The affected aircraft have been identified, and the JPO will work with the [U.S. military] services and [international] partners to ensure compliance with the TCTD."
A source, speaking on the condition of anonymity, told Defense News that JPO has internally acknowledged failure of a "tube used to transfer high-pressure fuel in the fighter's F135 engine."
As Newsmax chronicled in July, the U.S. Air Force temporarily grounded nearly its entire fleet of F-35 stealth fighter jets over concerns of faulty ejection seat parts.
"ACC's F-35s do have Martin-Baker ejection seats, and on July 19, began a Time Compliance Technical Directive to inspect all of the cartridges on the ejection seat within 90 days," Air Combat Command spokeswoman Alexi Worley said over the summer.
"Out of an abundance of caution, ACC units will execute a stand-down on July 29 to expedite the inspection process. Based on data gathered from those inspections, ACC will make a determination to resume operations," Worley added.
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