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 Lockheed Martin received an $18.9 billion contract 26 October for the Joint Strike Fighter to move into the next phase of the program, System Development and Demonstration (formerly Engineering and Manufacturing Development). Dr. James Roche, Secretary of the Air Force, announced the decision, “On the basis of strengths, weaknesses, and degrees of risk of the program, it is our conclusion, joined in by our colleagues from the United Kingdom, that the Lockheed Martin team is the winner of the Joint Strike Fighter program on a best-value basis.”
The SDD phase involves the production of an initial twenty-two aircraft with first flight planned for forty-eight months and first aircraft delivery planned for 2008. Plans call for more than 3,000 aircraft over the life of the program. The JSF is designed to replace the A-10, AV-8 Harrier, F-16, and the F/A-18.
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