Most F-35 jets return to flight following fuel tube issue

More than 80 percent of the military’s F-35 joint strike fighters have been cleared and returned to flight status after the entire fleet was grounded last week due to a fuel tube issue, the Pentagon’s F-35 Joint Program Office said Monday.

Half of the remaining grounded jets among the 245 flown by the Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps — about two dozen of aircraft — can be repaired with the military’s stock of replacement fuel tubes, according to the JPO.