Asia-Pacific

US says F-35 fighter jets program to delay for 2 years

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2010-03-03 11:10

WASHINGTON - US Air Force Secretary Michael Donley said Tuesday he expects the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program to be delayed for two years, raising questions about problems facing the Pentagon's marquee fighter jets.

Donley said he expects the F-35 jets to reach its initial operational capacity milestone by 2015, two years later than the service's original plan to field its first operational F-35 squadron. He said it's "the best estimate today on where we will be."

Donley said the Pentagon is still committed to the F-35 program, which was marred by delays and budget over-run. Defense Secretary Robert Gates fired the officer in charge of the program last month, and told lead contractor Lockheed-Martin to rein in cost and deliver on schedule, withholding US$614 million in performance bonuses.

"We want to hold the contractors' feet to the fire," Gates said.

However, with a two-year delay on the table, US media is abuzz with speculation that the program is in much deeper trouble than the Pentagon admitted.

The Pentagon plans to buy more than 2,400 F-35s over the next 25 years, at an estimated cost of about US$300 billion.