Senior leaders from the U.S. Air Force and European nations have discussed ways to integrate and operate the Lockheed Martin-built F-35 Joint Strike Fighter aircraft in the European theater during a two-day forum.The F-35 leadership forum at the Ramstein Air Base in Germany aimed to give future F-35 users a common vision on force projection, theater integration and interoperability, the Air Force said Friday.
Lockheed also provided a program update for forum attendees, which included officials from Denmark, Israel, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Turkey and U.K.
Bob Dulaney, a Lockheed aeronautics representative, said Lockheed plans to bring down the cost of F-35 aircraft to $85 million per copy in 2019, Stars and Stripes reported.
The report said the U.S. government will spend approximately $400 billion to acquire about 2,443 F-35s.
The Air Force plans to hold a multilateral symposium in October to continue discussions on F-35 interoperability, including operations, maintenance, logistics and intelligence.
