Three F-35 Joint Strike Fighters (rear to front) AF-2, AF-3 and AF-4, can be seen flying over Edwards Air Force Base in this December 10, 2011 handout photo provided by Lockheed Martin. REUTERS/Lockheed Martin/Darin Russell/Handout
Reuters: Exclusive: Pentagon, Lockheed near deal on $9 billion F-35 contract - sources
The U.S. Department of Defense and Lockheed Martin Corp (LMT.N) are close to deal for a contract worth almost $9 billion as negotiations are poised to bring the price per F-35 below $100 million for the first time, people familiar with the talks said Wednesday.
The F-35, the Pentagon's costliest arms program, has drawn fire from U.S. President-elect Donald Trump who has made lowering prices for military equipment a pillar of his transition into office.
Talks are still ongoing for the tenth batch of stealthy fighter jets with a deal for 90 planes expected to be announced by the end of the month, three people said on condition of anonymity.
A Lockheed representative declined to comment and a representative for the fighter program said negotiations are ongoing.
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Update #1: Lockheed Martin F-35 Program Cost Update: Pentagon Nears $9 Billion Deal With Defense Contractor, Report Says (International Business Times)
Update #2: Lockheed Agrees To Cut F-35 Price Below $100 Million In Latest Victory For Trump (Zero Hedge)
WNU Editor: Problems in the F-35 program are still there .... The F-35 program is once again in trouble, with full flight tests delayed until at least 2018 (Extreme Tech). More here .... The F-35 Is Slowly Starting to Replace the F/A-18 (But One Big Problem Won’t Go Away (National Interest).
