April 16, 2008 -- The Defense Department is buying more of Lockheed Martin Corp.'s F-35 Lightning II fighters as part of the plane's early production. The Pentagon decided last week to fund six Air Force jets and six for the Marine Corps, according to a Defense Department spokesperson. The purchase of the Marine Corps planes that can land vertically and take off in short distances will be contingent on the aircraft's first flight this summer and a review by senior Pentagon officials.
The U.S. wants to buy more than 2,400 of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighters for the Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps for about $299 billion through 2034. The new planes will cost on average about $69 million and replace many different aircraft in the U.S. arsenal. The work on the six Air Force planes is worth about $1.3 billion, while the six Marine Corps planes are worth about $1.11 billion.
Abstracted from The Wall Street Journal
