Blame the Navy: 
Sen. John Warner (R-Va.) says he is very concerned about the Pentagon decision to terminate the alternate engine for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. The Chairman of the Armed Services Committee told the Air Force’s top two leaders on Thursday that he and ranking member Sen. Carl Levin (D-Mich.) have asked for a special hearing on the subject. The committee needs to have a “better understanding” of how the decision originated and what consultation took place, maintained Warner. In response, Air Force Secretary Michel Wynne noted the increased “reliability” of modern engines, but, he added, that it was a Navy idea to which the Air Force “did not object.”
The Air Force wants to pump more than $12 billion over the next five years into its new affordable long-range missiles program and recently asked industry to push the flights of some of those munitions beyond 1,200 miles.