A new problem has emerged, described as critical level, in the F-35 Lightning II, which was facing many troubles since the program started.

In the statement made by the Pentagon, it was stated that the GAU-12 Equalizer guns of the F-35A Lightning IIs have accuracy problems in ground attack missions. Software errors were noted as the cause of the hit problem. It was also revealed that the strong recoil of the 25mm diameter gun caused cracks in the gun housing. For these reasons, it was announced by the Pentagon that the 25mm ammunition fired from the F-35As to the ground targets had high dispersion that would be described as inaccuracy.

It was pointed out that there is already a long list of problems that need to be resolved while not providing information about other issues detected on the aircraft. Thirteen of them are Category 1 level and had to be resolved before the Block 4 Phase, which was estimated cost 22 billion USD.