Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 15
15
Rejected
F-35 programme plagued by critical shortages of engineers, pilots, and flying instructors
Recommendation
The F-35 programme suffers from personnel shortages across a range of occupations. A 2024 review of the programme, by the National Infrastructure and Service Transformation Authority (NISTA, formerly the Infrastructure and Projects Authority), stated that shortages of suitably qualified engineers represented the biggest threat to delivering F-35 capability. These shortages have been exacerbated by the Department miscalculating how many engineers were needed per aircraft because it failed to account for staff taking leave and performing other tasks including guard duties.33 The National Audit Office report also found that the programme is short of cyber specialists, pilots and qualified flying instructors. In 2025 the programme only had five full-time flying instructors compared to its target of 16.34
Government Response Summary
The government disagrees with the recommendation to produce a plan specifically focused on the F-35 workforce, and will address the issue through the ongoing RAF People Campaign.
Government Response
Rejected
HM Government
Rejected
3.1 The government disagrees with the Committee’s recommendation. 3.2 The government agrees with the requirement to address the known recruitment and retention challenges through a holistic approach but disagrees with the recommendation to produce a plan specifically focused on the F-35 workforce. Instead, the department will address this recommendation through the ongoing RAF People Campaign that sets out challenging targets for the RAF to achieve workforce balance. 3.3 The Armed Forces continue to expect challenges recruiting for key skills where there is strong competition in the labour market including cyber, digital, healthcare & medical and engineering. Retention remains a key priority and an evidence-based approach, drawing on survey data, feedback, and wider engagement to understand the issues affecting personnel continues to be taken. A range of targeted measures have already been introduced to address immediate pressures, particularly for some specialist areas where there are workforce capability gaps. These include financial retention incentives, increased opportunities for Extensions of Service, broadened eligibility for Standard Learning Credits, and an uplift to disturbance expenses for personnel returning to the UK or moving between overseas locations. 3.4 RAF Recruitment & Selection have driven through no less than 130 adjustments to recruitment policy already, introducing education reform, fitness reform and most recently health reform to the recruitment approach, these initiatives have ensured that the RAF has seen more individuals enter Formal Training than at any time over the last 15 years.