The F-35A was designed to revolutionize air force combat acquisitions.
He would take the missions of several planes and do them all. Maintenance was going to be cheaper and easier thanks to the latest computer software. The list of planes he was going to replace was long. But the operating costs of the aircraft, 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 challenge we face on the plane is the cost of sustaining 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 this.”
Although the F-35 remains an incredibly capable aircraft, the Air Force seems to have decided to diversify its fleet. The F-15EX – an improved version of the F-15 that first flew in the 1970s – is on the block, and the first F-15EX was delivered to the Air Force on the month. Recent comments by the Chief of Staff of the Air Force, General Charles Brown Jr., have also highlighted the possibility of procuring a light fighter to replace the aging F-16.
“The idea that there are some accessibility challenges that the US will somehow bail out of this program is crazy,” said Justin Bronk, a researcher in aviation and technology at the Royal United Services Institute. “Of course, he has to consider the future mix of fighters. It makes sense, because the sums don’t add up and haven’t been added for a long time.”
Watch the video above to learn more about the most expensive weapon system in history.