Jane Edwards
Joe DellaVedova, a spokesman for the F-35 joint program office, has said a $60 million contract awarded to Lockheed Martin would support the second phase of the Blueprint for Affordability program in an effort to cut the production costs of the F-35 fighter jet, Defense News reported Wednesday.
The U.S. Navy on Monday awarded the $60 million contract modification to Lockheed’s aeronautics business to identify and carry out measures to reduce the fighter aircraft’s manufacturing costs.
“BFA 2 is aimed at driving production savings deeper into the supply chain,†DellaVedova said.
He noted the BFA 2 effort also seeks to generate savings as early as the 12th batch of F-35s and allocate at least 25 percent of the contract award to companies aside from Lockheed, BAE Systems and Northrop Grumman.
Lockheed is the prime contractor on the F-35 program, while Northrop and BAE respectively manufacture the center fuselage and rear aft fuselage components for the fighter jet.
Lockheed and its suppliers are expected to profit more under BFA 2’s funding structure that calls for the Defense Department to make an initial investment and provide incentives for cost-saving measures, the report added.
