The Pentagon's price tag for the Joint Strike Fighter is now estimated at $382 billion, a $54 billion increase since April that will push the unit cost for each aircraft -- excluding development costs -- to $133.1 million, according to Pentagon officials. The increase could also spark further debate about the program's long-term affordability. Ashton Carter, the Pentagon's acquisition executive, today advised Congress that an independent cost estimate for the F-35 program, prepared by the office of the director of...
