WASHINGTON — The Pentagon has given Congress wish lists totaling more than $30 billion in additional weaponry and personnel that could substantially boost the number of F-35s and Sikorsky helicopters purchased this year. These requests are in addition to the $30 billion President Trump has sough in increased funding for the Pentagon this year.
F-35
Posted inMoney, Politics
Federal budget deal boosts defense projects, other programs in CT
WASHINGTON — Connecticut’s defense industry is a big winner in a new budget deal that will keep the federal government running through September. It allows the Pentagon to increase the number of F-35 fighters and nearly double the number of Sikorsky Black Hawks it purchases this year. The bipartisan bill also funds a number of domestic programs important to the state, including the National Coast Guard Museum.
Posted inPolitics
Trump’s double down on defense would buy more Black Hawks, F-35s
WASHINGTON — On the same day President Trump rolled out his fiscal 2018 budget, which boosted defense spending, he also asked Congress for $30 billion in extra funding for the Pentagon, in part so it could immediately buy more F-35s and Sikorsky Black Hawks.
Posted inEducation, Health, Money, Politics, Transportation
Trump budget would end CT heating aid, housing, after-school programs
WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump’s first budget proposal would strip Connecticut of tens of millions of dollars in federal grants, eliminating programs that subsidize heating bills for nearly 110,000 Connecticut households and provide housing for the homeless and after-school care. But the budget would boosting the state’s defense industry and fund a border wall.
Posted inPolitics
Gentler Trump fails to win over CT Dems
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump sought to shift his tone during his first address to Congress, striving for unity and renewal – but did not succeed in bridging a partisan divide. For Connecticut’s Democrats, there was little to like.
Posted inPolitics
Push is on for more F-35s, Sikorsky helicopters and work for EB
Defense hawks are hoping the Trump administration will agree to a supplemental defense bill, and an increase in defense spending in the next annual budget. President Donald Trump has vowed to rebuild the military — and “to load it up” with “beautiful new equipment.”
Posted inPolitics
DoD, Lockheed Martin agreement cuts price of F-35
WASHINGTON — Under pressure from President Donald Trump to cut the cost of the F-35 program, the Pentagon and Lockheed Martin announced Friday they had reached agreement to lower the cost on the 10th lot of fighter jets by $728 million.
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Lockheed Martin CEO tells Trump deal is near on F-35s
WASHINGTON — “I’m glad I had the opportunity to tell him that we are close to a deal that will bring the cost down significantly from the previous lot of aircraft to the next lot of aircraft,” CEO Marillyn Hewson told reporters at Trump Tower.
Posted inPolitics
CT lawmakers vote against waiver for defense secretary nominee Mattis
WASHINGTON — Connecticut Sen. Richard Blumenthal on Thursday voted against granting retired Marine Gen. James Mattis a waiver that would allow him to serve as President-elect Donald Trump’s secretary of defense. Blumenthal was only one of three members of the Senate Armed Services Committee to vote against a waiver.
Posted inPolitics
Trump takes another shot at F-35 program
WASHINGTON — President-elect Donald Trump took another swipe at the F-35 program Wednesday during his first press conference since November’s election. “It’s way behind schedule and billions of dollars over budget,” Trump said. “I don’t like that.”
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McCain blasts DOD, Lockheed Martin for new F-35 delays
WASHINGTON — Sen. John McCain on Tuesday blasted the Pentagon and Lockheed Martin for a seven-month delay in the F-35 program that will cost the Pentagon an additional $500 million.
Posted inNews
Analyst: Trump’s idea for F-35 would be ‘a disaster for the U.S.’
WASHINGTON — While President-elect Donald Trump is unhappy about the cost of Lockheed Martin’s F-35, replacing it with a cheaper jet would face serious problems, defense analysts and Connecticut’s lawmakers say. Loren Thompson, a defense analyst with the Lexington Institute, called Trump’s idea “a disaster for the United States” that would hurt the nation’s military strength.
Posted inPolitics
Trump zings F-35, asks Boeing to offer F-18 alternative
WASHINGTON — President-elect Donald J. Trump on Thursday again slammed Lockheed Martin’s F-35 “cost overruns,” saying on Twitter he’s asked Boeing to compete with an updated version of the venerable F-18.
Posted inPolitics
Is the F-35 stealth fighter vulnerable to a Trump tweet?
One of Connecticut’s U.S. senators insists he won’t jump at every tweet by President-elect Donald J. Trump. But the other says he could not ignore what he took as Trump’s suggestion Monday that production of the F-35 fighter, the source of thousands of job in Connecticut and air superiority for the U.S. and its allies, might be reduced or abandoned.
Posted inNews
Air Force still doesn’t know what caused F-35 fire
WASHINGTON — The Air Force’s is continuing to investigate the cause of September’s fire in the rear area of an F-35 on a training mission in Idaho. It hasn’t ruled out problems with the jet fighter’s Pratt & Whitney engine.