Rep. Kay Granger (R-Tex.) won approval for her “lift the ban on F-22 export sales” amendment to the House version of the Fiscal 2007 defense appropriations bill. The amendment, which would delete the section that “prohibits funds in the bill from being used to approve or license the sale of the [F-22] advanced tactical fighter to any foreign government,” passed by voice vote. Granger’s district houses Lockheed Martin’s aeronautics division.
It'll take up to 18 months for Lockheed Martin to deliver the 100 or so F-35s that went directly from production line to storage, awaiting the completion of Tech Refresh 3 testing. Customers haven't complained about the order in which the backlog is being delivered.