The Air Force does not intend to cut the number of F-35A joint strike fighters it plans to buy despite rising concerns over ballooning upkeep costs, said Gen. David Goldfein, the service’s chief of staff.
Goldfein told reporters Thursday that the Air Force will pressure F-35 maker Lockheed Martin to bring down costs as it attempts to save money on sustaining the fifth-generation aircraft.
Air Force analysts determined the service may need to cut 590 from the 1,763 aircraft, about one-third, it plans to order over the next decade because of the $1.1 trillion it may cost to operate and maintain all three services’ aircraft through 2070, according to Bloomberg news.
“Remember, we are going to be buying these aircraft for a number of years, so it’s way too early to be talking about any curtailment of any procurement or any buy. Anything that we might be talking about is really well out into the future,” Goldfein said. “I don’t want, because it’s just not true, that there’s any — any — intent on our part to go one aircraft below the current program of record, because that is what we require today to actually accomplish the strategy as it’s currently written.”
The F-35 is considered the most advanced fighter in the world and also has the dubious distinction of being the most expensive Pentagon weapons program in history.
But the huge program price tag has long fueled criticism and the potential of growing operations and maintenance costs has sparked new concerns on Capitol Hill. Will Roper, the Air Force’s acquisition chief, recently promised senators that cutting the upkeep costs would be a top priority.
Goldfein said he is working with Ellen Lord, the undersecretary of defense for acquisition and sustainment, to pressure Lockheed on reducing costs for contractor support, personnel and parts.
“We are working all those issues to ensure we drive that sustainment costs down,” he said.
The Air Force seeks to bring down the upkeep costs of the F-35 to the same level as its predecessor aircraft, which still comprise much of the service’s fighter fleet, Goldfein said.
“My target as chief of staff of the Air Force is equivalent sustainment costs to fourth-generation” fighter jets.
