The Navy’s Top Officer Voices His Concerns On The F-135 Costs And Production Schedule

Heinz Smacks Pratt Over F-135 Costs -- DoD BUzz

The Navy’s top officer, Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Gary Roughead, used the roll-out ceremony of the carrier version of the Joint Strike Fighter to send a stark message about the planes to Lockheed Martin and its suppliers: “They must — they absolutely must — be delivered on time and on budget.

The reason is simple. The Navy’s F/A-18s are being flown at higher rates than originally planned and they are wearing out. Several senior defense lawmakers have been pressing the Navy to admit to a “fighter gap” and commit to buying more F/A-18s but the service has essentially pointed to the F-35C and said, we are buying that plane and it will be on time. Roughead noted this during his roll-out speech, saying the F-35 “will relieve our aircraft as they age out.”

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My Comment: The fact that he is making his concerns public tells me that he is lacking confidence that the Navy version of the F-35 will be delivered on time. Rumors of a "fighter gap" appear to be true.