Ramona Adams
Norway’s defense department seeks funds to procure an additional 12 Lockheed Martin-built F-35 jets in 2019 and 2020 through an annual budget proposal submitted to the country’s parliament, Star-Telegram reported Monday.
Max Baker writes Norway is the first international partner in the fighter aircraft program to propose a multiyear procurement of F-35s.
“Norway and other international partners on the F-35 program have been involved in the concept of a block buy since its inception,” Joe DellaVedova, a Defense Department spokesman for the F-35 program, was quoted as saying.
Baker noted that block-buy commitments can help reduce the aircraft cost-per-unit from $112 million (in 2013 dollars) to between $80 million and $85 million.
Lockheed rolled out Norway’s first F-35A conventional takeoff-and-landing aircraft in September 2015.
