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.
The Pentagon is counting on Congress to navigate a legislative tightrope and pass a party-line bill to fund nearly a quarter of its $1.5 trillion budget request for fiscal 2027, including billions of dollars for top priorities like Golden Dome, the F-35, munitions, and unmanned systems. Experts and lawmakers from…