DOD Starts Prep Work For JSF Price Negotiations With Lockheed Martin

摘要

Pentagon officials are taking a fresh look at the cost of the troubled Joint Strike Fighter program as they prepare for negotiations with contractor Lockheed Martin over the price tag for the jets under a proposed fixed-price arrangement.rnThe "should-cost" analysis, as the drill is known in acquisition jargon, comes as officials envision transitioning the JSF contract with Lockheed Martin from a cost-plus contract to a fixed-price agreement in the wake of significant cost overruns, Defense Department acquisition chief Ashton Carter told Senate Armed Services Committee members last week. The new contract structure would take effect with the award for lot 5 of the low-rate initial production phase next year, Carter said. Shay Assad, the Pentagon's director of defense procurement and acquisition policy, will lead the analysis, Carter told senators.