Air Force Says $400B F-35 Should Be Ready For Combat in August

After 15 years of embarrassing setbacks and mushrooming costs, the Air Force is close to declaring the $400 billion F-35 ready for combat, The Washington Post reports.

Officially called the Joint Strike Fighter but derisively known as the "plane that ate the Pentagon," the F-35 could be declared good to go around Aug. 1, the Post reported.

"I'm very, very confident it is going to continue to exceed our expectations," Gen. Herbert Carlisle told the Post. "We still have work to do on the airplane, and it will continue to get better."

Defense Contractor Lockheed Martin has delivered 180 planes so far, the Post reported.

The fifth-generation fighter's attributes, according to the Post:

• Pilots can fly undetected;
• Called a "flying computer," the F-35 gives pilots "unparalleled situational awareness;"
• The Navy's version of the fighter, F-35C, can land on aircraft carriers;
• The Marine Corps' version, F-35B, of the jet can land vertically;
• The Air Force's model, the F-35A, is the conventional jet.

The Marine Corps declared its model ready for combat last year, the Post reported, but the announcement by the Air Force is far more significant given its investment in the amount of planes, 1,763, is more than the other branches, the Post reported.

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