The US military has begun taking delivery of F-35 fighter jets without radar systems after Northrop Grumman was unable to manufacture the aircraft’s new AN/APG-85 radar quickly enough for installation on upgraded Lockheed Martin jets leaving the production line.

The aircraft are being delivered without the radars, each valued at about $9 million, which are considered essential for combat operations and battlefield effectiveness.

According to The Bunker, six US Marine Corps F-35s have already been delivered without radar systems.

An unspecified number of F-35s destined for the US Air Force and US Navy will also be delivered without radars. The new radar systems are not expected to be available before 2028.

The current radar cannot be fitted into the upgraded F-35 configuration.

One reason the approximately $196 million F-35 carries such a high price tag is its complex shape, stealth coating and integrated electronic architecture, all designed to reduce its radar signature.

According to The Bunker, the situation is comparable to “carbines without bullets, tanks without armor, ships without oceans, or nuclear weapons without the nuclear.”

The issue has become emblematic of the broader F-35 program. The $2 trillion project continues to struggle with readiness problems, in part because the Pentagon has not purchased enough spare parts to keep its fleet operational.

The radar shortfall is particularly notable because it marks a second instance in which perceived future threats have contributed to procurement complications.

A decade after the program began, then-Pentagon acquisition chief Frank Kendall said in 2012 that the initial rush to put the F-35 into production while its design was still evolving had been “acquisition malpractice.”

This time, the Pentagon says it deliberately accepted the risks of a “highly concurrent development and production program” to upgrade the F-35 so it could “maintain air superiority against future threats.”

In simple terms, “highly concurrent” means manufacturing components before the aircraft’s design has been finalized.

That approach ultimately left the aircraft without their new radar systems, repeating the same practice that Kendall criticized 14 years ago.

The radar-less F-35s will not remain grounded while awaiting the new electronic equipment.

Instead, the Pentagon now possesses a growing fleet of what has effectively become some of the world’s most expensive jet trainers.

A new public opinion survey in the United States suggests that nearly one-third of voters would be willing to support a democratic socialist candidate in an election.

According to the joint Economist/YouGov poll, 29% of respondents said they would be willing to vote for a democratic socialist candidate, while 45% said they would not support such a candidate. Another 26% said they were undecided.

The survey comes after democratic socialist candidates posted recent electoral successes in New York, Washington, DC, Los Angeles and the state of Colorado.

The democratic socialist movement in the US has gained significantly greater visibility, particularly since the election of New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani last year.

Independent Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders brought the modern democratic socialist movement into the mainstream of US politics during his 2016 presidential campaign, a process that was followed several years later by the election of Democratic New York Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.

The two politicians are widely regarded as the most prominent figures of democratic socialism in contemporary American politics.

In a post on social media platform X, Senator Bernie Sanders said: “When I look at the recent progressive victories in Colorado and elsewhere, and at the successful organizing campaigns taking root across the country, I believe we may be on the verge of the political revolution we have been fighting for.”

The Economist/YouGov survey also examined broader public attitudes toward the concept of socialism. It found that 32% of respondents viewed socialism “very favorably” or “somewhat favorably,” while 39% said they viewed it “somewhat unfavorably” or “very unfavorably.” Another 29% said they were undecided on the issue.

The Economist/YouGov survey was conducted between June 26 and June 29 among 1,606 respondents. The poll’s margin of error was 3.2%.

US commercial crude oil inventories fell to their lowest level since 2018 in the week ending June 26 as demand from domestic refineries increased, according to weekly data released by the US Energy Information Administration (EIA).

The data also showed a decline in gasoline inventories ahead of the July 4 Independence Day holiday.

The EIA reported that commercial crude oil inventories fell by 3.8 million barrels during the week to 408.4 million barrels, the lowest level recorded since September 2018.

Since Feb. 28, when the war with Iran began, total US oil inventories, including commercial crude stocks and government-controlled emergency reserves, have declined by 120.71 million barrels to 734 million barrels.

That marks the lowest level since May 1984.

The EIA said crude oil inventories at the Cushing, Oklahoma delivery hub rose by 709,000 barrels during the week after declining for nine consecutive weeks, having previously fallen below the site’s operational minimum of about 20 million barrels.

Following the data release, Brent crude futures extended their decline, with prices falling 1.6%.

US crude futures were little changed after the inventory draw came in smaller than expected, trading about 1% lower.

The EIA said refinery crude oil inputs increased by 85 per day, while refinery utilization rose by 0.5 percentage points to 96.6% during the week.

Commenting on the data, Again Capital partner John Kilduff said: “US refineries are running at full capacity, and that is an absolutely critical requirement.”

Gasoline supplied, a key indicator of demand, increased by 356,000 barrels per day last week to 9.13 million barrels per day. The data also showed US gasoline inventories fell by about 2.3 million barrels during the week to 214 million barrels.

US gasoline futures held onto gains and rose 1.1% after the report showed a larger-than-expected decline in gasoline inventories.

The American Automobile Association (AAA) said the national average retail gasoline price stood at about $3.85 per gallon.

US President Donald Trump said on Monday that gasoline retailers should immediately lower prices, warning they would face “big problems” in the future if they failed to do so. Trump urged retailers to target a price of $2.50 per gallon.

The data showed inventories of distillate fuels, which include diesel and heating oil, rose by 2.5 million barrels to 108.6 million barrels, contrary to expectations for a draw of 500,000 barrels.

US diesel futures surrendered part of their gains following the unexpected increase in distillate inventories but remained up about 0.4%.

The EIA also reported that US net crude oil imports increased by 370,000 barrels per day.