The $1 trillion question: is the F-35 project too big to fail?

[dilbert firestorm]

https://www.airforce-technology.com/.../f-35-project/


apparently it is... too big to fail.



there is talk of reducing the buy by 500.


Turns out that the F-35 is a very expensive beast to operate & maintain.


so much for the geniuses at Air Force who pushed for this thing.



I'd like to see them fired, if retired, reduce their rank.!!!!

[dilbert firestorm]

interestingly the Boeing alternative F-35 may have been a better design; post competition trials. It was a different aircraft than the one that was trialed.



Boeing definitely got caught short on the F-35 trials.

[garhkal]

This is one thing i REALLY hate about how the military does things.. Consistently pays out for OVER PRICED, over time new designs, that often are not worth 1/10th their cost.

[dilbert firestorm]

Originally Posted by garhkal

This is one thing i REALLY hate about how the military does things.. Consistently pays out for OVER PRICED, obsolete new designs, that often are not worth 1/10th their cost.

FTFY!!!!


its a procurement system problem with what they are doing. I think they did a design-build with the F-35 which part of the problem with the cost.



the other part is that the manufacturer as part of a political calculation deliberately spread the parts manufacture across the country so as to ensure passage of the sale (stake holders in the deal) and to prevent other people from killing it.



the military is aware of this problem. for instance soldiers are using radios from the 1990s and its data uplink is like around 16K of data and its speed is around 56Kbps. we are in megabit and terrabit range!!!



they are 10 years too slow. as far as electronics and radars go, it should take no more than 2 years to put in the hands of soldiers and in aircraft.

[garhkal]

Originally Posted by dilbert firestorm

the other part is that the manufacturer as part of a political calculation deliberately spread the parts manufacture across the country so as to ensure passage of the sale (stake holders in the deal) and to prevent other people from killing it.

So if we KNOW they are doing this, to deliberatly jack up prices, WHY DO WE NOT tell them cut it the hell out, or lose al government contracts!??

[dilbert firestorm]

Originally Posted by garhkal

So if we KNOW they are doing this, to deliberatly jack up prices, WHY DO WE NOT tell them cut it the hell out, or lose al government contracts!??

stake holders in the deal. if the part is being manufactured in a congressman's district or a senators state they'll vote for it. This strategy makes it very hard to kill a deal, or a bill loaded with "goodies".



if Phil Gramm stayed in the senate, he'd be making the F-35 the "golden fleece' award list which he used to make every year.