Trump claims $600M in F-35 savings

President Trump told reporters Monday that Lockheed Martin has cut $600 million off the cost of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program.

"Number one, we're cutting the price of their planes by a lot but they're also expanding, and that's gonna be a good thing," Trump told reporters at the White House. "I appreciate Lockheed Martin for being so responsive. I think that was a great achievement, but that really means much more than that if you think about the fact that that's 90 planes out of close to 3,000 planes that are being ordered."

Lockheed did not immediately respond to a request from Inside Defense to confirm the figures.

Additionally, Defense Secretary James Mattis announced Friday that he is reviewing the F-35 with an eye toward “significantly” cutting costs.

The JSF's estimated acquisition cost is $400 billion, according to the Government Accountability Office.

Trump has been critical of the F-35's high price tag since December and has met with Lockheed CEO Marillyn Hewson several times to discuss the program. Hewson has said the jet's cost is expected to come down, though details have yet to emerge.

"Basically, President Trump recognizes that the F-35 is a very large program -- it's the largest program in the Department of Defense," she said during a Jan. 24 earnings call. "He wants to make sure that the American taxpayer is getting the lowest possible cost on the program, and we understand his concerns about affordability."

UPDATE 11:43 a.m.: In a statement, Lockheed Martin said: "We appreciate President Trump's comments this morning on the positive progress we've made on the F-35 program. We share his commitment to delivering this critical capability for our men and women in uniform at the lowest possible cost to taxpayers."