A defense spending bill being considered in the House would dramatically boost funding for the Pentagon to buy more F-35 joint strike fighters in 2019.
The House Appropriations Committee released a draft version of its annual defense bill Wednesday that provides $9.4 billion for 93 of the high-tech Lockheed Martin aircraft, which is 16 more than the 77 requested by the military.
The bill also differs from the two versions of the annual defense authorization bills being put forward by the House and Senate. The House has authorized 77 F-35s while the Senate is weighing the purchase of 75 due to cost concerns about sustaining the aircraft.
The $675 billion appropriations bill is slated for a mark up in the House Appropriations defense subcommittee on Thursday. The Senate has yet to release a defense appropriations bill.
“With the changing global dynamics and ever-growing threats to our security, it is absolutely imperative that our military is properly trained, equipped, and fully supported in order to do their jobs,” Rep. Rodney Frelinghuysen, R-N.J., the committee chairman, said in a statement.
