Battle looming over costly F-35 programme

The F-35 Joint Strike Fighter is the Pentagon’s most expensive weapons acquisition ever, and the stealthy jet could be seen as a big target for cost cutting when U.S. President-elect Donald Trump takes office

ESTIMATED COSTS (F-35A)

Helmet: LCD displays take input from aircraft sensors and overlay them on pilot’s field of view $400,000

Avionics: Include phased array radar, precision targeting system and 360° situationa lawareness sensors. $16m

Airframe: Structural composites form35 percent of weight. Skin embeddedwith radar-absorbing “fibre mat”. $65m

25mm gun $12m

Weapons: Internal bays can carry four AIM-120 air-to-air missiles $1.1m per missile

Engine: Single Pratt & Whitney F135 turbofan $13m

TEN LARGEST PENTAGON PROGRAMMES IN 2015 By acquisition cost, $bn (FY 2016)

Initial estimate 

Change since initial estimate 

F-35 Joint Strike Fighter  340 48%

Arleigh Burke-class destroyer 115 619%

Virginia-class submarine 91 40%

V-22 Osprey tiltrotor aircraft 62 44%

EELV* 61 221%

Trident II missile 58 4%

KC-46 aerial tanker 44 -8%

Ford-class aircraft carrier 36 -5%

P-8A maritime aircraft 33 -1%

UH-60M helicopter 26 86%

F-35 unit cost (as of Dec 2014) $138 million Includes research and
development

*Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (boosters for military satellite deployment)

Sources: U.S. Government Accountability Office, Forecast International, Gizmodo