‘Boy, Do I want To Get Away From Being The Trillion Dollar Airplane’: Bogdan

[unhappycamper]

http://breakingdefense.com/2014/07/boy-do-i-want-to-get-away-from-being-the-trillion-dollar-airplane-bogdan/



‘Boy, Do I want To Get Away From Being The Trillion Dollar Airplane’: Bogdan
By Colin Clark on July 10, 2014 at 6:04 PM

FAIRFORD, UK: Lt. Gen. Chris Bogdan hates being labeled the man who oversees the trillion dollar jet fighter, also known as the Joint Strike Fighter as you can tell from the headline.

Breaking Defense readers will remember that this estimate is extends more than half a century and includes such assumptions as the Marines will fly the F-35 vertically or in hover much more frequently than they will horizontally.

Bogdan has bullied, wheedled, cajoled and enticed the companies who make the F-35 to cut those costs and to do a better job of communicating with him and the taxpayers about problems with the plane.

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On top of those savings — which should bring the price of an F-35 in line with existing fourth generation fighters, as Martin has promised before. That should mean an F-35 will cost about $80 million each by 2019.