This is news. The percentage of smokers in the military is greater than percentage in America as a whole. Some 34 percent of the military smoke, while only 25 percent of Americans smoke. At least one reason for a four percent rise in military smokers since 2002, states Col. Gerald W. Talcott with the Air Force Medical Support Agency, is the war on terror.
Contracts for F-35 airframes in Lot 18 and 19 should be signed in the spring, but an engine deal is still not in hand and could take months longer. The delays don't seem to be driven by anticipation of how the new Trump administration will influence the program.