NATIONAL HARBOR, Md., Sept 14 (Reuters) - The U.S. Air Force on Monday said it "most likely" will not participate in a "block buy" that the Pentagon hopes to put together for foreign countries purchasing Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) Corp's LMT.N F-35 fighter jet in coming years.
Major General Jeffrey Harrigian, director of the Air Force's F-35 integration office, said it would be "very difficult" to align the Air Force's budget process and F-35 procurement plans in time to participate in a multi-country "block buy" that the Pentagon is looking at starting in fiscal 2018.
"It's a timing issue," he told reporters at the annual Air Force Association conference.
A "block buy" would pool planned purchases by several countries over a number of years to benefit from larger economies of scale and drive down the price of the new stealth fighter. U.S. military spending is generally authorized only one year at a time, unless specific targets are met, and that usually occurs when a weapons program has matured beyond where the F-35 is now.
Harrigian said the issue was further complicated by political gridlock in Washington and the prospect that the U.S. Congress could fail to pass a budget for fiscal 2016, which some fear may result in a full-year continuing resolution.
Harrigian said the Air Force, the largest U.S. buyer of F-35s, had nearly locked down its fiscal 2017 budget plans for the program, but gave no details. He said the service's budget planning was too far advanced when discussions began about a possible block purchase.
The U.S. military is preparing for a rapid ramp up in production of the $391 billion F-35 fighter jet program in coming years, with Lockheed slated to go from building 40 jets a year to 120 jets for the U.S. military and the 10 countries that have already placed orders: Britain, Norway, Denmark, Australia, the Netherlands, Italy, Turkey, Israel, Japan and South Korea.
Air Force Lieutenant General Chris Bogdan, who runs the F-35 program for the Pentagon, last week said the steep ramp-up in production could stress suppliers and that the jet's automated logistics system still faces problems. ID:L1N11F28X
Harrigian said the Air Force was continuing to look at the issue and possible "hybrid" solutions that would allow it to benefit from any cost savings.