NATO military equipment with the most problems

The largest ship of the British fleet continues to endanger its crew: this is not the first malfunction. Sputnik has written about NATO military equipment that has been experiencing technical problems.

HMS Queen Elizabeth

Leaking aircraft carrier

The HMS Queen Elizabeth is one of two ships in the British aircraft carrier project. The £3.1 billion ship has been under construction for eight years. The ship is 282.9 meters long, 75 meters wide, and has a full load displacement of 65,000 tons. The Queen Elizabeth will carry nearly 40 aircraft, including the naval version of the F-35 fighter jet and Merlin helicopters.

Now the ship is undergoing sea trials, in 2020 Queen Elizabeth should be commissioned. Of course, if experts can eliminate the cause of the leak.

According to the Defense News portal, this week the testing activities were stopped because of seawater entering the compartment. A spokesman for the British Ministry of Defense reported that the leak was “a minor problem with the internal system”. According to British media, an estimated 200 tons of seawater entered the compartment. Of course, for a ship with a displacement of 65 thousand tons, this is a small amount, but the testing activities were stopped.

This is the second time the ship has been leaking. The first time the latest British aircraft carrier had a similar problem was in December 2017 – on the third day of sea trials. Experts also discovered a problem with the screws then, and the carrier was sent for repairs.

There is also debate in the expert community about the type of equipment on board the Queen Elizabeth. In 2017, it was reported in the press that the aircraft carrier was using the Windows XP operating system, which was no longer supported by Microsoft. This made the Queen Elizabeth vulnerable to cyber attacks.

F-35 stealth fighter.

Fighters in trouble

The fifth-generation F-35 fighter, whose development program cost more than $55 billion, will go down in air force history as one of the most problematic American aircraft.

In 2018, the Pentagon released a report indicating that nearly a thousand weaknesses had been discovered in the F-35 design that had not been eliminated. Of these, 111 were classified as Level 1, which could cause death, serious injury, loss or major damage. All of them would significantly limit the combat readiness of the armed forces using this fighter model.

Specifically, the report's authors note that the aircraft could be destroyed when flying in a thunderstorm because of its vulnerable plastic components and fuel tanks, which are susceptible to damage and explosion. In addition, F-35 pilots complained of dizziness, tingling fingers, and disorientation, which suggests a lack of oxygen during the flight.

Previously, it was also noted that the disadvantages in the "ejection seat" of the F-35 aircraft are dangerous for pilots weighing less than 75 kg and the night vision mode of the pilot's helmet creates a blue halo that hinders the pilot's vision if landing at night, disadvantages in the electronic system etc.

In January 2019, Bloomberg published a Pentagon report on serious problems with the F-35's reliability and durability, with weapons accuracy and software imperfections. Specifically, it turned out that the high-tech coating made of materials that reduce the ability to absorb radar waves was wearing out faster than expected. Yet the Pentagon still bought these planes and still sold them to its closest allies.

Puma infantry fighting vehicle.

Combat vehicle too heavy

For a long time the German Ministry of Defense refused to buy the latest infantry fighting vehicle Puma. But, in April 2015, Puma was accepted into service with the German army. German Defense Minister Thomas de Maizière said that the Bundeswehr would not order these combat vehicles until the developers eliminated serious shortcomings.

During the testing of the first five vehicles, problems were discovered with night vision equipment and fire control systems, with the observation support system. Part of the shortcomings were eliminated, the Puma was put into service, but, experts continue to criticize it.

Experts say the main drawback of the new infantry fighting vehicle is its combat weight of nearly 43 tons, which is comparable to the Russian T-90 main battle tank. This complicates the transport of the Puma by air and negatively affects its tactical mobility.

Another criticism of the Puma is its height of 3.1 meters. That is, the Puma is even taller than a Leopard 2 tank and is very vulnerable to anti-tank weapons. And another serious drawback is that the Puma infantry fighting vehicle costs around 9 million euros per unit, probably the most expensive vehicle in its class.

The technical condition of the Puma supplied to the army has also been a problem. In 2018, Die Welt reported that of the 71 Pumas delivered the previous year, only 27 were fit for service.

Zumwalt-class destroyer DDG-1000

Super expensive destroyer

The US Navy’s Zumwalt-class stealth destroyers are an example of lofty ambitions that have led to modest results. The Pentagon planned to buy 32 of them for $40 billion. However, the final price tag nearly doubled. The Pentagon’s order was reduced to 24 ships, then to seven. The Navy was eventually limited to just three ships, which cost about $4.4 billion each.

The Zumwalt-class destroyer, DDG-1000, was launched on October 16, 2016. A week later, the ship experienced a generator failure while transiting the Panama Canal. The ship's auxiliary engine pump motor leaked water. This caused the ship to hit a bank and become stuck in the canal. The Zumwalt was towed to the nearest naval base for repairs.

In December 2017, during sea trials, Zumwalt's younger brother, the destroyer DDG-1001, also suffered a malfunction. The US press wrote that the filters protecting electrical equipment, which are very sensitive to electrical fluctuations, were damaged, as a result of which the ship lost the ability to use the electrical network at high loads. The trials were interrupted, and the ship returned to the shipyard for repairs.

In addition, the Pentagon has yet to come up with a replacement for the very expensive LRLAP artillery shells (costing up to $800,000/round), which must be equipped for the 155mm guns on the Zumwalt.

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