Workers can be seen on the moving line and forward fuselage assembly areas for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter at Lockheed Martin Corp's factory. (Reuters)
Pentagon F-35 Program Chief Lashes Lockheed, Pratt -- Reuters
(Reuters) - The Pentagon program chief for the F-35 warplane slammed its commercial partners Lockheed Martin (LMT.N) and Pratt & Whitney on Wednesday, accusing them of trying to "squeeze every nickel" out of the U.S. government and failing to see the long-term benefits of the project.
U.S. Lieutenant-General Christopher Bogdan made the comments during a visit to Australia, where he has sought to convince lawmakers and generals to stick to a plan to buy 100 of the jets, an exercise complicated by the second grounding of the plane this year and looming U.S. defense cuts.
Pratt & Whitney, a unit of United Technologies Corp (UTX.N), is sole supplier of engines to the $396 billion F-35, or Joint Strike Fighter. Lockheed Martin provides the body of the radar-evading jet, the most expensive combat aircraft in history.
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Update #1: F-35 program chief rips defense firms -- DoD Buzz
Update #2: F-35 program chief lashes out at jet producers -- RT
My Comment: The Pentagon F-35 Program Chief is probably right .... but his performance has not exactly been stellar either. The F-35 program is in trouble, and with budget cuts now being debated .... it would not surprise me if the F-35 program ends up being put on the chopping block. The contractors are definitely aware of this possibility, and are now probably trying their best to recoup their costs from a program that is now faced with huge costs and greater scrutiny from the budget cutters. Is this wrong .... yes .... but it is also not surprising.