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Budget

Senate Panel Trims F-35 Buy Due To Sustainment Concerns

By Marc Selinger

Thursday, May 24th, 2018

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Senate Panel Trims F-35 Buy Due To Sustainment Concerns

Hill Air Force Base F-35As fly in formation over the Utah Test and Training Range, March 30, 2017. (U.S. Air Force photo/R. Nial Bradshaw)

The Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) has approved a fiscal year 2019 defense authorization bill that would trim purchases of F-35 Joint Strike Fighters and Air Force KC-46A tankers, citing problems with both programs.According to an 11-page summary released late May 24, the bill would procure 75 Lockheed Martin [LMT] F-35s, cutting the Trump administration’s request by two jets “to realign the program towards sustainment.” The Air Force and Navy would each lose an F-35.The reduction is accompanied by increased funding for F-35 spares, modifications and…

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