Sponsored message
Logged in as
Audience-funded nonprofit news
radio tower icon laist logo
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
 — 
See All Episodes
Subscribe

Hey, LA listener!

Download our app for the optimal streaming experience

Apple Store logo Google play logo
  • Listen Now Playing Listen
  • Listen Now Playing Listen
Take Two

Will budget cuts threaten the future of the pricey F-35 Joint Strike Fighter jet?

By Take Two Staff
Published Dec 12, 2012
In this image released by the U.S. Navy courtesy of Lockheed Martin, the U.S. Navy variant of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, the F-35C, conducts a test flight February 11, 2011 over the Chesapeake Bay. Lt. Cmdr. Eric "Magic" Buus flew the F-35C for two hours, checking instruments that will measure structural loads on the airframe during flight maneuvers. The F-35C is distinct from the F-35A and F-35B variants with larger wing surfaces and reinforced landing gear for greater control when operating in the demanding carrier take-off and landing environment.
In this image released by the U.S. Navy courtesy of Lockheed Martin, the U.S. Navy variant of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, the F-35C, conducts a test flight February 11, 2011 over the Chesapeake Bay. Lt. Cmdr.
(
U.S. Navy/Getty Images
)

Take Two translates the day’s headlines for Southern California, making sense of the news and cultural events that affect our lives. Produced by Southern California Public Radio and broadcast from October 2012 – June 2021. Hosted by A Martinez.

Get LA News Updates Daily

We brief you on what you need to know about L.A. today.
Listen 8:04
Will budget cuts threaten the future of the pricey F-35 Joint Strike Fighter jet?

As the country edges closer to the fiscal cliff, the pentagon is facing some particularly deep cuts. But there's one program that not only seems invulnerable to cuts; Its costs actually keep ballooning.

We're talking about America's newest jet fighter, the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. Here in California, building the plane involves 300 manufacturers and tens of thousands of jobs. To build and maintain the aircraft, the government estimates it will have to spend over $1 trillion, making it the most expensive weapons program ever.

To put it in perspective, $1 trillion dollars is roughly the size of the Australian gross domestic product.

Winslow Wheeler, director at the Project on Government Oversight in Washington DC, is here to explain.