The F-35A was designed to revolutionize the acquisition of fighters for the Air Force.
He would take missions from various aircraft and do everything. Maintenance would be cheaper and easier thanks to cutting-edge software. The list of planes to be replaced was long. But the aircraft’s operating costs, which are around $ 36,000 an hour, are still about $ 10,000 more expensive than older fighters in the Air Force’s inventory.
“The biggest cost challenge we face on the plane is the cost of maintaining the jet’s life cycle,” said Brig. Gen. David Abba, director of the Air Force’s F-35 integration office. “What I can say is that the Air Force is focused on that.”
Although the F-35 remains an incredibly capable aircraft, the Air Force appears to have decided to diversify its fleet. The F-15EX – an updated version of the F-15 that flew for the first time in the 1970s – is in the acquisition block, and the first F-15EX was delivered to the Air Force this month. Recent comments by the Air Force Chief of Staff, General Charles Brown Jr., also pointed to the possibility of purchasing a light fighter to replace the aging F-16.
“The idea that, due to some accessibility challenges, the United States is going to somehow just give up on this program is crazy,” said Justin Bronk, an air and technology researcher at the Royal United Services Institute. “Of course, they have to consider the mix of fighters of the future. It makes sense because the accounts don’t match, and they haven’t done for a long time.”
Watch the video above to learn more about the most expensive weapon system in history.