By Marina Malenic
There is solid support for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) program both within the Defense Department and on Capitol Hill, and funding for the next-generation fighter will not be siphoned to the F-22 Raptor program, the F-35 Air Force program manager said yesterday.
“We’ve seen broad support for the program and, as of yet, we’ve seen no reason that that support is going to change” under President-elect Barack Obama’s administration, said Maj. Gen. C.R. Davis. “There is nobody on Capitol Hill that has stood up and said they want to cancel JSF.”
Davis said all three armed services that will use the aircraft–the Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps–and are strongly supportive of the program. But the Air Force in particular is interested in a “strong mix” of fighter jets and bombers, with the F-35 seen as crucial to that vision, he said.
“The Air Force is the most vocal supporter of JSF. They want to make sure that, in the future, their [concept of operations] can be fulfilled,” said Davis. “As of yet we see no indication that F-35 money will go to fund F-22.”
The general was speaking at the Brookings Institute in Washington.
The fiscal year 2009 defense authorization and appropriations acts together allow the Pentagon to spend up to $140 million for 20 F-22s that would be purchased in FY ’10. Obama is due to make a decision no later than March 1 on whether another $383 million can be spent on long-lead parts to keep the production line active (Defense Daily, Jan. 13).
Earlier in the day, Davis said, F-35 managers met with congressional leaders to discuss restoration of funding for an F-35 carrier variant (CV). Legislators last year cut $43 million from the program that was intended for purchase of long-lead items for CV test jets.
“It doesn’t seem like a lot of money,” said Davis, “but it is enough to slip your schedule significantly.”
Meanwhile, several international customers are expected to make F-35 purchasing decisions over the next several months.
“We believe that there’s a decision roughly at the end of month from the [United Kingdom] to buy their first test jets,” Davis said, while a similar decision from Denmark is likely to come “in the next couple of months.” Israel could also sign a formal agreement by the end of the year, he added.