By Zachary Keck
On Wednesday Australia announced it will buy 58 additional F-35s joint strike fighters for $12.4 billion.
Australia committed on Wednesday to purchase 58 additional F-35 Joint Strike Fighters (JSF) at a cost of $12.4 billion.
Prime Minister Tony Abbott and Defense Minister David Johnston announced the move in a speech in Canberra today, and said that the aircraft would be delivered to Australia by 2023. This will bring Australia’s total F-35 fleet numbers up to 72 after an initial pledge to purchase 14 F-35s back in 2009. Australia also holds an option to acquire a further 28 JSFs in the coming years.
According to The Australian, which broke the story before the speech, the $12.4 billion will count towards the purchase of the aircraft as well as “new facilities and infrastructure to be built for the new aircraft at RAAF Base Williamtown in NSW and RAAF Base Tindal in the Northern Territory.”
Still, as the newspaper noted, the price tag will make the F-35 acquisition the largest single defense deal in Australian history. It comes at a time when Australian lawmakers have been slashing pensions and other services in order to restore a budget surplus. In that vein, Prime Minister Abbott repeatedly stressed during the speech on Wednesday that the government already had the $12.4 billion on hand and the purchase would not affect future budgets.
Read the full story at The Diplomat