The Pentagon plans on seeking congressional approval for a three-year block buy of F-35s that could help drive down prices of the aircraft, said the Defense Department’s acquisition chief Frank Kendall on May 29.
The buy would span fiscal years 2018 through 2020 and include up to 150 jets per year. Both international partners and foreign military sales customers would be eligible, he told reporters.
By consolidating three years of orders into one contract, F-35 manufacturer Lockheed Martin [LMT] and its suppliers can achieve economies of scale and produce the aircraft more efficiently, which in turn cuts the cost of the plane for customers. Kendall predicted “double-digit savings” are likely if a deal is agreed to.
Congress will have the final word on the block buy, but Kendall said he feels optimistic about its chances based on the progress of the program, which is meeting cost and performance parameters and is close to meeting schedule projections specified in the 2011 rebaseline.
“There’s a fundamental change in our direction. We’re not sitting here worried about the risk for completing baseline development,” he said. “We’re turning our focus much more toward fielding the program, upgrades in the future and getting whatever efficiencies we can going forward.”
This week, Kendall attended an annual meeting in Norway where F-35 program stakeholders such as international senior leaders and industry executives discussed its outlook. When he asked potential customers of the jet about the block buy this morning, all buyers voiced interest, he said. “They all see the benefits of it.”
During the meetings in Norway, discussions centered on the future of the aircraft, he said. The United States, Turkey, Norway and United Kingdom all want to integrate new weapon systems with the Block 4 configuration F-35s that will start rolling off the production line as early as 2019. Department officials laid out a notional plan for partners at the meeting in Norway, and intend to firm up that plan over the next few months.
All partners will be able to integrate their weapons with Block 4 jets, said Lt. Gen. Christopher Bogdan, F-35 program executive officer. “It’s just a matter of when in that period of time between 2019 and 2025 we can field that capability,” he said. “That depends on a number of things, not least of which is how mature that weapon actually is.”
The Defense Department is also looking at how best to move the program from contractor logistics support to a performance based logistics (PBL) contract, where Lockheed Martin and F-35 engine manufacturer Pratt & Whitney [UTX] would be responsible for meeting specific performance metrics. Some F-35 subsystems are already maintained under PBL contracts, but Kendall wants to expand that to the entire system.
“Our historical analysis shows 10 to 15 percent reductions roughly,” he said. “We expect to have something on that order.”
The block buy announcement caps off an eventful month for the Joint Strike Fighter, which on May 27 wrapped up two weeks of operational tests on the USS Wasp (LHD-1) amphibious assault ship.
Over eight days, 10 Marine Corps pilots flew 108 sorties totaling more than 85 hours, said Marine Lt. Gen. Jon Davis, the service’s deputy commandant for aviation. The goal of the tests was to solidify the integration of the short-takeoff, vertical-landing F-35B with a big deck amphib ahead of its initial operational capability this summer (Defense Daily May 19).
During the test flights, pilots practiced missions such as airborne interdiction and defensive combat, tested the jet’s stealth capability and flew in both day and nighttime conditions, Davis said. “I would say it was highly successful.”
The test period also focused on logistics and sustainability, including coordinating the above and below deck crews who prep the aircraft for flights and repair it afterward, he said. An F-35 engine was flown in on a V-22 Osprey so maintainers could practice swapping out engines.
The Autonomic Logistics Information System—which supports sustainment activities, from the purchase of spare parts to the plane diagnostics—performed well, allowing the Marine Corps to achieve its turnaround times, he said.
The Marine Corps is pushing to field 10 F-35s in July, becoming the first of the services to operate the aircraft. Air Force initial operational capability is slated for 2016, and the Navy plans to field its first planes as early as 2018.