For the benefit of the U.S. military-industrial complex, the Norwegian authorities preferred to classify information about the shortcomings of the fifth-generation F-35 fighter-bombers.
In this way, the Norwegian Minister of Defence, Frank Bakke-Jensen, reacted to the report on the problems identified during the operation of the F-35 in the northern conditions.
“The study of the operational capabilities of the fighter aircraft includes possible vulnerabilities in the maintenance, logistics and supply functions, fighter bases and air defence. This type of information is important for external intelligence. Based on the overall assessment, we believe the document should be assessed as limited,” the official said.
It is worth noting that the Norwegian Air Force has previously faced one of the shortcomings of the F-35. The fact is that the fighters supplied to the Nordic country are equipped with a system aimed at reducing the aircraft’s mileage at ice airfields. The principle of operation is to use a brake parachute made of Kevlar. However, in the course of the tests it was revealed that the mechanism does not work.