President-elect Donald Trump on Wednesday met with a team of military leaders, including Air Force leaders and acquisition officials. The team included Air Force Vice Chief of Staff Gen. Stephen Wilson, Air Mobility Command chief Gen. Carlton Everhart, F-35 program executive Lt. Gen. Chris Bogdan, and Deputy Chief of Staff for Strategic Deterrence Lt. Gen. Jack Weinstein, according to a pool report of the briefing released by Politico. Other military leaders included Vice Chief of Naval Operations Adm. William Moran, Missile Defense Agency Director Vice Adm. James Syring, Navy acquisition head Vice Adm. David Johnson, and Naval Sea Systems Command chief Vice Adm. Thomas Moore. Trump said after the meeting he was “trying to get costs down,” primarily of the F-35.
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth vowed to undertake far-reaching reforms on the way the U.S. military buys weapons, promising a sweeping overhaul of the way the Defense Department determines requirements, handles the acquisition process, and tests its kit. The fundamental goal, which Hegseth underscored in a 1-hour and 10-minute speech…
