12 very expensive F-35 jets have been grounded because the ejection seats parachutes were installed backwards. Why? Because somebody (maybe a hapless technical writer) screwed up the procedure.
They loaded the parachutes in their ejection seats in the wrong way, they were “reversed 180 degrees from design during installation,” according to Joe Dellavedova, at the Joint Strike Fighter Joint Program Office. The reason for the incorrect loading of the parachutes was “improperly drafted packing procedures.” A one trillion dollar plane grounded by “improperly drafted packing procedures.” Let that sink for a bit.
Dellavedova argues that this “wouldn’t have prevented the pilot from ejecting and landing.” But of course, it wouldn’t be the right kind of landing and the pilots could have been injured because they would be hitting the ground in the wrong position, according to Aviation Week’s industry experts: