US Navy lost an F-35 in the China Sea, How much in USD?

Portland OR

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How Much Does an F-35 Actually Cost? Up to $337 million—apiece—for the Navy version by WINSLOW WHEELER The F-35 is not just the most expensive warplane ever, it’s the most expensive weapons program ever. But to find out exactly how much a single F-35 costs, we analyzed the newest and most authoritative data. Here’s how much we’re paying. A single Air Force F-35A costs a whopping $148 million. One Marine Corps F-35B costs an unbelievable $251 million. A lone Navy F-35C costs a mind-boggling $337 million. Average the three models together, and a “generic” F-35 costs $178 million. It gets worse. These are just the production costs. Additional expenses for research, development, test and evaluation are not included. The dollars are 2015 dollars. This data was just released by the Senate Appropriations Committee in its report for the Pentagon’s 2015 appropriations bill. Except for the possibility that the F-35 Joint Program Office might complain that the F-35A number might be a little too low, these numbers are about as complete, accurate and authoritative as they can be. Moreover, each of the other defense committees on Capitol Hill agree or—with one exception—think each model will be more expensive. The Pentagon’s numbers for these unit costs—in every case—are higher.