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

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.

The U.S. will ultimately spend $1 trillion to produce the F-35 next generation fighter jet. It's a classic cautionary tale of Pentagon cost overruns.

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.