President-elect Donald Trump continues to turn the heat up on Lockheed Martin and its F-35 stealth fighter. Trump is now suggesting that his administration may sideline the F-35 in favor of buying more Super Hornets.
“Based on the tremendous cost and cost overruns of the Lockheed Martin F-35, I have asked Boeing to price-out a comparable F-18 Super Hornet!” Trump tweeted on Thursday evening.
Once again, Lockheed Martin shares dropped.
On Wednesday, Trump held a meeting with top U.S. military officers and Lockheed Martin representatives. The discussion centered around “trying to bring costs down,” Trump said. “Primarily the F-35, trying to get the costs down. A program that is very, very expensive.”
The meeting included F-35 program chief Lt.-Gen. Christopher Bogdan.
Marillyn Hewson , CEO and President of Lockheed Martin Corporation released a statement after the meeting, noting it was productive. “I appreciated the opportunity to discuss the importance of the F-35 program and the progress we’ve made in bringing the costs down,” she said. The F-35 is a critical program to our national security, and I conveyed our continued commitment to delivering an affordable aircraft to our U.S. military and our allies.”
Trump said he is “just beginning” negotiations with Lockheed Martin. He noted it is “a little bit of a dance.”
Whether he is serious about ordering more Super Hornets or is just using that as a negotiating/scare tactic with Lockheed Martin remains to be seen.
