Fixing the Fat JSF

Oct. 11, 2005

Audio of this article is brought to you by the Air & Space Forces Association, honoring and supporting our Airmen, Guardians, and their families. Find out more at afa.org

The Pentagon awarded Lockheed Martin a $6.5 billion contract to cover additional work required to fix problems identified early with the weight of the short takeoff and landing version of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. In the 2005 appropriations round, Congress allotted funds to iron out extra design and engineering work needed to cut weight from STOVL version, the most complex of the three versions. Lockheed, Northrop Grumman, and BAE Systems are the project’s prime contractors. The Air Force plans to buy about 250 of the F-35B STOVL fighters.

Audio of this article is brought to you by the Air & Space Forces Association, honoring and supporting our Airmen, Guardians, and their families. Find out more at afa.org

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