The US Defense Department's F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program works "very well" amid the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, but a decision for full rate production of the aircraft has not been made yet, Under Secretary of Defense Ellen Lord said during a press briefing on Wednesday
WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 25th March, 2020) The US Defense Department's F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program works "very well" amid the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, but a decision for full rate production of the aircraft has not been made yet, Under Secretary of Defense Ellen Lord said during a press briefing on Wednesday.
Edwards Air Force Base in California temporarily paused tests of the F-35 jet and the full rate production decision remains unknown, media reported earlier on Wednesday.
"Right now I can not comment on the full rate production decision. We are moving forward," Lord told reporters.
Lord also said the F-35 program is performing "very well."
"While we work on COVID-19, we still have normal operations going executing on our programs," she said.
However, the Defense Department has to discuss a number of items in terms of research and development, testing and operations, Lord added.
The full rate production decision had been initially scheduled for December of 2019, but now subsequently set for January of next year.
