$22.7 billion F-35 production deal before Operational Testing
One might think that for such a big order to be placed, the F-35 worked out all the development kinks. But it looks like a ploy to get a big contract, claim economy of scale savings, and fix the planes later. The contract was 40% of Lockheed’s total ordinary revenue, and the US’s end of the bill looks to be nearly one-third of the entire aircraft procurement budget for Navy and Air Force, which came in at about $36 billion in the FY 2019 request.