The U.S. Navy’s drastic cut to its next-generation fighter was a conscious decision to deal with congressionally imposed budget cuts and prioritizes near-term modernization over long-term plans.
The service’s comptroller says, however, that the limited funding in current budget plans will be enough to fund the F/A-XX to the “next decision point.”
In the fiscal 2025 budget request, the Navy is calling for just $453.8 million for research and development on the Next Generation Fighter program, with about $3.3 billion total requested over the next four years. That number is dramatically less than the long-term plan outlined in the fiscal 2024 budget request, which called for $2.2 billion in fiscal 2025 and $10.2 billion total over the four-year period.
Read the rest of the story at Aviation Week, here.
