Aircraft

The Air Force's light-attack experiment is suspended until further notice as service officials determine whether they gleaned enough data from flight tests to end the effort early, following a fatal A-29 crash last week at White Sands Missile Range, NM.

The Defense Department's recent $660 million award to Lockheed Martin to support an F-35 economic order quantity buy will yield less than half of what the program expected in cost savings, according to a letter obtained this week by Inside Defense.

In response to congressional inquiries, the Air Force has drawn up options for buying fewer than 17 aircraft under the E-8C Joint Surveillance Target Attack Radar System recapitalization program, according to the service's military deputy for acquisition.

Air Force and Navy sustainment officials have been working since December to develop a detailed cost estimate for a plan to establish an organic F-35 Joint Strike Fighter software maintenance capability and will brief the program's sustainment lead in the next few weeks.

The Navy’s aviation community is lagging behind the shipbuilding enterprise in determining how to modernize its depots and is slated to submit a plan to Congress next year, according to a senior official.

House appropriators are offering an additional $194 million in their version of the fiscal year 2019 defense spending bill to accelerate the Air Force's move to a new Compass Call platform.

NEW YORK -- The president of Pratt & Whitney's military engine group said this week the company is working to cut the cost to fly the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter's propulsion system in half over the next 10 years, telling reporters sustainment is a top priority for the engine manufacturer.

Perplexed by the Pentagon's decision to decrease its Joint Strike Fighter spare parts purchases as jets continue to roll off the production line, Senate authorizers are clearing an additional $100 million in fiscal year 2019 for the effort.

Concerned about potential capability and capacity gaps prior to fielding the Air Force's next-generation B-21 bomber, Senate authorizers want an update on modernization plans for the B-52 and B-2 fleets.