US Marine Corps Receives First Six F-35B Fighters Without Radars

The US Marine Corps has begun receiving F-35B short takeoff and vertical landing fighters without onboard radar systems installed.

This was announced by the head of the F-35 Joint Program Office, US Marine Corps Lieutenant General Gregory Masciello, during a US Senate hearing.

The reason was a delay in the delivery of the new AN/APG-85 radar, which is set to replace the current AN/APG-81.

According to the general, the Marine Corps has already accepted six F-35B aircraft from production Lot 17 without radars. Instead of a radar system, ballast has been installed in the nose of the aircraft to compensate for the weight of the missing equipment and allow the aircraft to fly.

The delay was caused by the transition to the new AN/APG-85 radar, which Northrop Grumman is developing as part of the Block 4 modernization program.

The Lot 17 aircraft have already been adapted for the new radar, so it is no longer possible to install the previous AN/APG-81 radar without making design changes.

Until the aircraft receive their standard radars, they will be used only for basic flight training and practicing specific operational procedures. They will not be able to perform combat missions or undergo full-scale combat training.

Serial deliveries of the AN/APG-85 radar are expected to begin no earlier than 2028. After that, the F-35B fighters that have already been delivered will be retrofitted with the new radars.

Earlier, Militarnyi reported that due to delays in the development of the new AN/APG-85 radar, the United States will receive F-35 aircraft for its Air Force without radars starting in June 2025.

At that time, deliveries continued despite the equipment shortage.

Rob Wittman, chairman of the US House of Representatives Subcommittee on Tactical Aviation, confirmed the existence of the problem. According to him, delivering the aircraft in their current configuration is a ‘challenge’ because the AN/APG-85 requires significantly more power and more robust cooling than its predecessor.

This directly links the radar issue to the need to upgrade the F-35’s engine and thermal management system.