Air Warfare
Defense bill would cut F-35 purchases in 2025, delay deliveries
By Stephen Losey
Congress is set to cut the number of Lockheed Martin-made F-35s the military wants to buy in 2025 from 68 to 58 under this year’s defense authorization bill.
The proposed National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal 2025, which lawmakers released Saturday, would also limit to 48 how many newly purchased fighters the military will take delivery of until the Pentagon shows how it plans to fix several problems with the Joint Strike Fighter program.
The Air Force would be able to buy and accept delivery of 30 F-35As under the NDAA. The Marine Corps would get nine F-35Bs, which are the short takeoff and vertical landing variant of the jet, and the Navy and Marine Corps would get nine F-35Cs that can land on an aircraft carrier. The Pentagon’s original budget proposal for 2025, released in March, asked for 42 F-35As, 13 F-35Bs and 13 F-35Cs.
https://www.defensenews.com/air/2024/12/10/defense-bill-would-cut-f-35-purchases-in-2025-delay-deliveries/
