More from the article ...
... What happened
Leaving Australia behind schedule, a load of F-35 spare parts ended up going through Hong Kong as a supposed shortcut to get them to the US faster. According to a person familiar with the matter, the diversion happened because an employee at United Parcel Service Inc. failed to heed instructions banning passage through specific countries under the US International Traffic in Arms Regulations, or ITAR.
The freight forwarder DSV A/S had alerted handlers that the box contained an F-35 cockpit canopy and a weapons-bay door, both treated with radar-absorbing material. The intended route ran from Australia to San Francisco, stopping in South Korea and Taiwan, which are both US defense partners. Instead, the shipment was diverted through Hong Kong, and China ended up with the parts. The person spoke anonymously because they were not authorized to speak publicly.
Who was involved and what was disclosed
DSV was acting for F-35 maker Lockheed Martin Corp. when it flagged the ITAR restrictions, as US rules require. The person said the notice may have gone out through an IT platform other than the system the UPS employee was using to process the shipment.
Pentagon officials shared new details during an approximately hour-long Sept. 29 briefing with staff from the House Foreign Affairs and Armed Services committees. The account added context to how a chain of mistakes may have allowed access to highly sensitive US military technology, creating an embarrassment for both the Pentagon and Lockheed. ...
