In his Air Force days, Muellner was the top blue-suit acquisition official, and also the “father” of the Joint Strike Fighter; he was the director of the program that established joint requirements for what is now the F-35. His observation: If we were starting the JSF today, it would be a much different airplane. Range and persistence would be a bigger factor. The world is very different than it was in 1993.” Full disclosure: Muellner’s company, Boeing, lost out in the JSF competition.
House lawmakers unveiled a new reconciliation package July 15 with $60 billion for defense, $290 billion less than the Pentagon has been seeking, a day after a Senate vote to advance the annual defense policy bill failed—developments that show the perilous state of the Pentagon’s ambitious plans for fiscal 2027.