WASHINGTON, September 24 — The Pentagon is investigating how components of the F-35 Lightning II, the stealth fighter it bills as the most advanced in the American arsenal, ended up in Hong Kong, with Bloomberg reporting Wednesday that China has obtained the equipment. The F-35 Joint Program Office said in a statement that it and the Defense Department are aware of “a shipment issue” involving F-35 components.
“We are actively working with U.S. authorities and industry partners to retrieve these components, investigate the incident, and place safeguards to avoid a future occurrence,” the office said. Under the hood, the hardware in question is a cockpit canopy and a weapons-bay door.
According to Bloomberg, the shipment was unexpectedly diverted to Hong Kong while en route from Australia to the United States for either repair or disposal months ago. It was not clear how the diversion occurred.
A congressional inquiry, and a denial from Canberra
Politico earlier reported that the incident prompted a congressional inquiry over concerns that China could gain access to key components of highly classified technology. Australian Defense Minister Richard Marles acknowledged Tuesday, responding to reporters’ questions, that the jet components ended up in Hong Kong — but denied the missing parts were “sensitive equipment.” “Yeah, so we are obviously working with the United States and obviously with its prime contractor Lockheed Martin, in respect of this,” Marles said.
He added: “My understanding is that there is a sense of comfort, and we’re not talking about sensitive equipment here or sensitive parts. Ultimately, though, this is an issue which is going to be managed by the United States and by Lockheed in terms of what has occurred.” Australia is one of several nations whose militaries operate the stealth fighter.
Lockheed did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment Wednesday — the same day Chinese leader Xi Jinping arrived in Washington for a state visit with President Donald Trump. China’s Foreign Ministry said it was not aware of the incident, and the Hong Kong government said it would not comment on specific cases. Beijing has kept tight control over Hong Kong since the territory was returned from British rule in 1997; Hong Kong cannot maintain its own military or conduct its own diplomacy.
The technical reality, and what Beijing may already hold
The first F-35 Lightning strike fighter rolled off an assembly line in Texas about 20 years ago and was hailed as a technological leap. Since then, more than 1,200 of the stealth jets have been made and 19 countries have placed orders for the planes, according to the Congressional Research Service. China already may have had at least some intelligence, albeit several years old, on the planes.
The Defense Science Board, which advises the Pentagon, released a report in 2013 alleging that Chinese cyberattacks accessed data from dozens of Pentagon programs, including the joint strike fighter. The F-35 is “widely recognized as America’s best and most advanced fighter jet,” according to Bradley Bowman, senior director of the Center on Military and Political Power at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, a hawkish Washington-based think tank.
Bowman told the AP in November that American military systems are constantly being updated and improved, counteracting any possible secrets stolen years ago. Described as a fifth-generation fighter, the F-35’s technologies include stealth coatings as well as advanced radar and sensors, according to the Congressional Research Service. Bowman said the plane has advanced sensors to better detect enemies as well as networking capabilities to communicate with allied planes and ground forces during combat.
As ever, the detail that matters is the chain of custody. Watch whether the Joint Program Office’s retrieval effort produces the parts, and whether Congress extracts a fuller account of how a shipment bound for the United States from Australia cleared customs in the wrong hemisphere.
