The US stops the delivery of F-35 fighters after discovering that one of the engine parts is Chinese-made

MADRID, 8 Sep. (EUROPA PRESS) -

The United States has temporarily halted the delivery of F-35 fighter jets to its international customers after discovering that one of the engine components, a magnetized piece of metal alloy, is made in China.

"We have confirmed that the magnet does not transmit information or damage the integrity of the aircraft and there are no performance, quality or safety risks associated with this issue. Flight operations for the in-service F-35 fleet will continue as normal." said the spokesman for the Department of Defense, Russ Goemaere, according to the CNN network.

The giant Lockheed Martin, which is responsible for building the planes, has scheduled at least 153 deliveries this year. However, the Pentagon has not reported whether there will be delays or the number of aircraft that have these Chinese components.

"We are working closely with the Department of Defense and Lockheed Martin to ensure that we continue to meet those commitments in the products that Honeywell supplies for use in the F-35," said Adan Kress, a spokesman for the company that makes the F-35s. engines, Honeywell, according to Politico.

Now that aircraft deliveries have stopped, the relevant departments are investigating why these Chinese alloys are found in fighter engines. If the Biden Administration determines that Lockheed Martin has violated the law, called Buy American, that encourages the purchase of products exclusively made in the United States, the company would need a government permit to resume deliveries.