New F-35 Fighter Costs to Hit $1 TRILLION

[Matt Molnar]

Associated Press, via Yahoo:

Jet Fighter Costs to Hit $1 Trillion (http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/080311/jets_high_costs.html?.v=1)
Tuesday March 11, 6:44 pm ET
By Richard Lardner, Associated Press Writer
Cost of Buying, Flying Military's New Jet Fighter to Reach $1 Trillion, Audit Says

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The cost of buying and operating a new fleet of jet fighters for the U.S. military is nearing $1 trillion, according to a congressional audit that found the program dogged by delays, manufacturing inefficiencies and price increases.

Released Tuesday, the report from the Government Accountability Office offers a sobering assessment of the ambitious effort to deliver a modern series of aircraft known as the F-35 Lightning II to the Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps. [Full Article (http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/080311/jets_high_costs.html?.v=1)]

[cancidas]

that's insane! wouldn't it cost less to re-engineer a AV-8 or F-14 from the ground up with new engines, avionics and weapon systems?

[jran225]

What a waste of money.. :roll:

Greets,
-Omar S.

[USAF Pilot 07]

While a TRILLION dollars sounds, and is, very steep, one thing to keep in mind is that these planes will be going to the Air Force, the Navy and the Marines, not just one service...

That being said, a trillion dollars still sounds somewhat excessive.

[Nick]

It's not just the birds, it's their infrastructure. Everything from sim's to spare engines to the Technical Orders to maintain them. I'd like to compare it to the cost of the Raptor, for reference, as well as some legacy Fighters.