More F-35 Woes

[unhappycamper]

Oct 23, 2012:

http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/story/2012/10/23/pol-cp-dnd-f-35-air-force-alternatives.html



Head of air force tells Canadian Press other planes not considered, later statement says that's not true

(Canadian) Air force contradicts itself on F-35 fighter jet options
The Canadian Press
Posted: Oct 23, 2012 9:39 AM ET

A statement from National Defence says the head of the air force misspoke when saying the Harper government had yet to direct the air force to look at aircraft other than the contentious F-35 stealth fighter.

The newly appointed commander of the Royal Canadian Air Force said in an interview last week with The Canadian Press that he's assigned a staff officer to work with a public works agency overseeing the CF-18 replacement program, but a thorough examination of other possible aircraft would require a more detailed study by military planners.

~snip~

In its haste to answer the auditor general last spring, the government initially named its Public Works secretariat the "F-35 secretariat," a slip Mulcair says that indicates the fix is in.

Another government promise coming out of the bombshell report involved providing an independent cost-estimate for the radar-evading jets and its 25 years of follow-on support and maintenance by early June.


Oct 24, 2012:

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/10/24/us-lockheed-fighter-idUSBRE89N1NU20121024

Lockheed sees "great progress" on F-35 fighter
By Andrea Shalal-Esa
WASHINGTON | Wed Oct 24, 2012 5:36pm EDT

(Reuters) - Lockheed Martin Corp (LMT.N) on Wednesday said it was making "great progress" on the F-35 fighter jet program, with F-35 deliveries exceeding those of F-16 fighters and C-130J transport planes combined for the first time in the third quarter.

Chief Operating Officer Chris Kubasik, who takes over as CEO next month, said there were 94 F-35 jets in various stages of production at Lockheed plants in Fort Worth, Texas and Marietta, Georgia, plus a final assembly plant in Italy run by Alenia, a subsidiary of Finmeccanica SpA (SIFI.MI).

~snip~

He said labor costs were coming down faster on the F-35 program than any previous fighter jet program in over 40 years. Lockheed is on track to hit its target unit "flyaway" cost, excluding development, of $67 million in fiscal 2012 dollars by 2018, he added.

The program was in the limelight again last month, when the Pentagon's future F-35 program manager, Major General Christopher Bogdan, said ties between Lockheed and the government were the "worst" he'd ever seen.



Oct 25, 2012:

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/10/25/us-lockheed-fighter-idUSBRE89O1OG20121025

Lockheed sees $1.1 billion liability if F-35 deal delayed
By Andrea Shalal-Esa
WASHINGTON | Thu Oct 25, 2012 7:08pm EDT

(Reuters) - U.S. weapons maker Lockheed Martin Corp (LMT.N) said on Thursday it faced a potential termination liability of $1.1 billion on the F-35 fighter program unless it received additional funding for production of a sixth batch of airplanes by year end.

Lockheed disclosed the potential exposure in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission a day after company officials cited "great progress" on the fighter jet program.

Chief Financial Officer Bruce told analysts on Wednesday that Lockheed expected to finalize a contract with the U.S. government for a fifth batch of fighter jets in the fourth quarter, which would help free up additional funding for planes in a sixth order.

He told reporters that failure to reach a deal on the fifth batch of planes by the end of the year would have little impact on Lockheed's 2012 results because it had already received funding for about 75 percent of the work on those planes.

[xchrom]

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