Pentagon strikes new F-35 deal with Lockheed after Trump involvementhttp://www.foxnews.com/politics/2017/02/03/pentagon-strikes-new-f-35-deal-with-lockheed-after-trump-involvement.htmlLockheed after Trump involvement
Published February 03, 2017 FoxNews.com
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The Trump administration announced Friday that the Pentagon has reached a tentative deal with Lockheed Martin for the purchase of 90 F-35 jets at the lowest price in the program’s history – saving the government millions, officials said.
Trump, as president-elect, made headlines in December when he tweeted that the costs for the F-35 program were “out of control.”
This led to meetings and negotiations with the defense mega-contractor, apparently culminating in Friday's nearly $9 billion agreement.
Lt. Gen. Chris Bogdan, F-35 program executive officer, called the contract a "good and fair" deal for taxpayers.
"We continue to work with Industry to drive costs out of the program," he said in a statement.
Lockheed Martin, in a statement, acknowledged Trump's involvement spurred them to drive down the cost.
"President Trump’s personal involvement in the F-35 program accelerated the negotiations and sharpened our focus on driving down the price. The agreement was reached in a matter of weeks and represents significant savings over previous contracts. This is a good deal for the American taxpayer, our country, our company and our suppliers," the statement said.
The Pentagon announced the deal would bring the cost per jet for the F-35A below $100 million for the first time -- to $95 million, marking a 7.3 percent drop in price from the last order.
Officials estimated, based on the per-plane price of the most recent F-35 order, the new agreement represents a $728 million reduction.
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