F-35 fighter costs, $1 trillion over 60 years, draw scrutiny

By Christian Davenport / The Washington Post

WASHINGTON — The Pentagon’s newly installed top weapons buyer told a Senate panel Thursday that she was “determined to reduce the cost” of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, a price tag projected to top $1 trillion over its 60-year life span, making it the most expensive weapons system in the history of the Defense Department.

Speaking before the Senate Armed Services Committee, Ellen Lord, the undersecretary of defense for acquisition, technology and logistics, said the Pentagon would work along with the program’s prime contractors, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman and BAE Systems, to “improve cost performance.”

Shortly before he was inaugurated, President Donald Trump took aim at the F-35, saying the “cost is out of control.” He vowed that once his administration took office, it would save “billions of dollars.”

Since then, he’s softened his stance, recently lauding the “awesome power and stunning beauty of the F-35” during a visit to Joint Base Andrews in Maryland. “When our enemies hear the F-35 engines, when they’re roaring overhead, their souls will tremble, and they will know the day of reckoning has arrived,” he said in September.

Thursday’s Senate hearing came a few weeks after Congress’ watchdog agency took aim at the stealthy fighter jet’s so-called sustainment costs, those associated with maintaining and operating the fleet, which are expected to reach $1.1 trillion over the life of the program.

The Pentagon’s ability to repair F-35 parts at military depots are six years behind schedule, “which has resulted in average part repair times of 172 days,” according to a report recently released by the Government Accountability Office. That timeline is twice as long as the goal for the program.

Further, the report found that “spare parts shortages are degrading readiness.” From January to August of this year, F-35s were unable to fly 22 percent of the time “due to parts shortages,” the GAO said.

While sustainment costs have risen as the Pentagon has increased flying hours and extended the life of the program, those costs “are not fully transparent to the military services,” the GAO said.

The struggles with the cost come as production by manufacturer Lockheed Martin is about to ramp up. Currently, there are some 250 F-35s in operation, the report said. That is slated to triple by the end of 2021 and eventually could grow to as many as 3,200 aircraft to countries across the world.

The report also notes the complexities in keeping a jet as advanced as the F-35 up and running. The F-35 comes in three variants, one for the Air Force, the Navy and the Marine Corps and is designed to eventually replace the military’s current fleet of fighter jets. It is also being sold to several foreign militaries. Known as a fifth-generation fighter, it has many advanced capabilities, such as its radar-avoiding stealth. It’s often called a flying computer, and with 8 million lines of code, it serves as a flying sensor in the air as much as an attack aircraft.

For years, Pentagon officials have been adamant that the problems plaguing the program-billions of dollars in cost overruns and years of delays caused by technical difficulties — were behind them. As they declared that the program was finally on track, the program achieved several important milestones: In 2015, the Marine Corps declared its version of the fighter was ready for combat. Then the Air Force did the same last year.

But as the rate of production climbs, the high-profile program will continue to attract scrutiny. “Right now, an enormous amount of my time is focused on F-35,” Lord told the Senate panel.