F-35 Parts in Chinese Hands in Hong Kong: Unreturned, Report Claims

The shipment is said to have included the cockpit canopy and weapons bay door of an Australian Air Force F-35 fighter jet. Both components are reported to have been supplied by Lockheed Martin and to contain special radar-absorbent materials that help reduce radar signature. For this reason, although the parts do not contain direct electronic systems, they are assessed as potentially providing certain information about the F-35's low-observability technology.

How the incident unfolded has not yet been fully clarified. According to Bloomberg sources, it is unknown why the shipment stopped in South Korea, who made the decision to redirect it to Hong Kong, and whether this was a deliberate act or a mistake. While it was previously thought that the parts were merely diverted to Hong Kong and lost, the new information has raised the claim that the Chinese government took custody of them.

China has not issued a clear statement on the matter. While the Chinese Embassy did not immediately comment, the Beijing Foreign Ministry said on September 24 that it was unaware of the incident. On the U.S. side, however, it is stated that the incident is known and that efforts are underway to recover the parts.

The F-35 Joint Program Office under the Pentagon announced that the issue related to the shipment is being investigated and that U.S. authorities and industry partners are working together to recover the parts. Lockheed Martin also stated that it is working with relevant parties to strengthen oversight of shipping processes in order to prevent a similar incident from recurring.

The Pentagon and Lockheed Martin also state that the parts in question are unusable and that the risk of sensitive technologies being exploited is low. However, the radar-absorbent materials used in the cockpit canopy and weapons bay door are drawing attention to the incident because of the F-35's low-observability capabilities.

The features that reduce the F-35's visibility to radar do not consist solely of the aircraft's airframe design. Special materials and coatings used on various parts of the aircraft are also among the key elements of this capability. For this reason, examination of physical components is regarded as a matter that could provide additional information, even if limited, about the aircraft's stealth characteristics.

The main question after the incident is how the parts were diverted to Hong Kong and under what conditions China gained access to them. The investigations being conducted by U.S. and Australian authorities are expected to uncover the source of the error in the shipping chain or the decision to redirect the shipment.