The F-35A was designed to revolutionize the acquisition of fighters for the Air Force.
I was going to take the missions of several planes and do it all. Maintenance would be cheaper and easier thanks to state-of-the-art computer software. The list of planes I was going to replace was long. But the costs of operating the plane, which is about $ 36,000 per hour, are still about $ 10,000 more expensive than the older fighters in the Air Force inventory.
“The biggest cost challenge we face on the plane is the cost of maintaining the jet’s life cycle,” Brig said. General David Abba, director of the Air Force’s F-35 integration office. “What I can tell you is that the Air Force is laser-focused on that.”
While the F-35 remains an incredibly capable aircraft, it appears that the Air Force has decided to diversify its fleet. The F-15EX, an upgraded version of the F-15 that first flew in the 1970s, is on the acquisitions block and the first F-15EX was delivered to the Air Force this month. Recent comments by Air Force Chief of Staff General Charles Brown Jr. also pointed to the possibility of acquiring a light fighter to replace the aging F-16.
“The idea that because there are some affordability challenges, that somehow the United States will only bail out this program, it’s crazy,” said Justin Bronk, an energy and air technology researcher. of the Royal United Services Institute. “Of course, they have to consider the future mix of fighters. It makes sense because the sums don’t add up and they haven’t been added for a long time.”
Watch the video above for more information on the most expensive weapon system in history.