When the Air Force began buying the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter about 20 years ago, it took a total system approach, meaning prime contractor Lockheed Martin earned the rights to total control of the program, including the intellectual property of its technologies and mechanical parts. The military, on the other hand, gave up the ability to put its own manpower behind sustainment or to solicit other vendors for support. But that strategy has so far resulted in poor performance, lawmakers...
