House Democrats condemn F-35 procurement plus-up ritual

By Courtney Albon / April 23, 2021 at 5:00 AM
Two top Democrats on the House Armed Services Committee said this week they won't support any proposal to add F-35s to the Defense Department's fiscal year 2022 budget request, suggesting the practice -- which has become tradition over the last seven years -- has harmed the program and contributed to the services' mounting sustainment costs. Since 2015, Congress has added 97 F-35s to the Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps' budget requests, House Armed Services tactical air and land forces...

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