They can't get off the ground in a storm? There have been significant storms in Europe lately, but, the F-35 is grounded because of a storm. Basically.
September 22, 2020
By David Cenciotti
The Dutch air force (click here) said its F-35s would take part in a one-day exercise with US bombers last month, but the risk of a thunderstorm forced it to cancel the participation.
The risk is related to an issue with the F-35's fuel system, a design fault that could cause the jet to explode if struck by lightning, that was first discovered during tests in 2009.
On August 28, 2020, six B-52H Stratofortress bombers took part in Allied Sky, a single-day mission that saw the strategic bombers overfly all 30 NATO nations.
Allied Sky was conducted by two teams: four B-52s with the 5th Bomb Wing, from Minot Air Force Base, North Dakota, deployed to RAF Fairford, UK, were tasked to cover European portion of the mission flying single-ship sorties; two B-52s, also belonging to the 5th Bomb Wing at Minot Air Force Base, flew as a two-ship formation over Canada and the United States.
As reported in detail in this previous article, the one-day mission provided an opportunity for the B-52 to integrate with several NATO nations' air force fighter aircraft and aerial refueling aircraft: RAF Typhoons and FAF Mirage 2000 over the Baltic off Lithuania; BAF F-16s over Belgium; RDAF F-16s and RNoAF F-35s over Scandinavia; Polish Air Force F-16s and MiG-29s over Poland; Czech Air Force JAS 39 Gripen over Czech Republic; Romanian Air Force F-16s and MiG-21 Lancers over Romania; Bulgarian MiG-29s over Bulgaria; Croatian MiG-21s over Croatia; Hellenic Air Force F-16s over Greece; Italian Air Force Typhoons and F-35s over Italy; Portuguese F-16s over Portugal; Ukrainian Su-27s and MiG-29s over Ukraine.
According to the initial plans, also the F-35A Lightning IIs of the Royal Netherlands Air Force would have had to take part in Allied Sky escorting one of the B-52s. The KLu had announced the participation of the Dutch Lightning II jets on social networks but the mission was cancelled due to bad weather:...
None of this is good news. The B-52 had to send an emergency call to be sure a routine landing can be conducted in the UK? These jets are huge. Evidently, there is some sort of concern about the landing accommodations of the jet.
25 September 2020
By Tariq Tahir
According to tracking website Flightradar 24, the aircraft transmitted a “squawk code 770, indicating general emergency, near Tewkesbury, UK”.
Two of the giant planes were spotted in the skies above the county on Friday, Gloucestershire Live reports.
The aircraft had call signs BALOO51 and BALOO52 and both were flying at an altitude of over 9,000 feet.
According to Flightradar 24 the aircraft that issued the warning had the call sign BALOO52 and was built in January 1961, though it will have gone through several upgrades and refurbishments.
The US Air Force later said the plane was on a training mission when it experienced a "general in flight emergency" ....
...Its crew issued the warning to ensure full access to RAF Fairford, where it is currently operating from, and it landed safely.
The US Air Force said in statement: "On Sept. 25 2020, a U.S. B-52H Stratofortress from the 5th Bomb Wing at Minot Air Force Base in North Dakota was returning to RAF Fairford from a routine training mission.
"While enroute to RAF Fairford, the B-52 experienced a general in flight emergency, which our experienced crews are able to identify and respond to due to their routine training and preparation.
"The squawk was a precaution to ensure they had proper access to the airfield to complete a safe and clear landing which they successfully accomplished."
