{"id":4878,"date":"2026-01-21T05:08:31","date_gmt":"2026-01-21T05:08:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sawahsolutions.com\/range\/navys-future-fighter-jet-program-revived-in-new-funding-bills\/"},"modified":"2026-01-21T05:08:32","modified_gmt":"2026-01-21T05:08:32","slug":"navys-future-fighter-jet-program-revived-in-new-funding-bills","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sawahsolutions.com\/range\/navys-future-fighter-jet-program-revived-in-new-funding-bills\/","title":{"rendered":"Navy\u2019s future fighter jet program revived in new funding bills"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Congressional appropriators have revived funding for the Navy\u2019s F\/A-XX program and lambasted the Defense Department for failing to award key development contracts for the service\u2019s sixth-generation fighter jet.<\/p>\n

While the program was designated to get just $74 million by the National Defense Authorization Act signed into law last month, appropriators moved to give it another $897 million in a four-bill package, including the annual defense appropriations bill, on Tuesday.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThe agreement supports the Navy’s efforts to develop the F\/A-XX sixth generation fighter and understands the program’s unique capability in delivering air superiority to the fleet, including greater operational range, speed, stealth, and enhanced survivability,\u201d appropriators wrote in the bill, which would need approval by both houses and the president\u2019s signature to become law.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The move bucks plans by the White House, Navy, and Pentagon\u2019s plans to underfund the effort and focus on the Air Force\u2019s F-47 instead.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s the latest twist for a program marked by debates and disagreements between Congress, the White House, and the Pentagon. In March, the Navy reportedly came close to choosing Boeing or Northrop Grumman to make the future aircraft, but no announcement was made, and only the bare minimum amount of money was put forth for the program.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In Tuesday\u2019s bill, appropriators lashed out at the Defense Department for dragging out the timeline. Officials \u201cexpended nearly all fiscal year 2025 funding on contract extensions with minimal demonstrated value to the program,\u201d the lawmakers wrote in a joint explanatory statement.<\/p>\n

The bill also said \u201cthat none of the funds made available to the Department of Defense for this fiscal year or any prior fiscal year may be used to pause, cancel, or terminate the Next Generation Fighter program.\u201d<\/p>\n

Defense budget experts told Defense One <\/em>that appropriators breaking with the Senate and House Armed Service Committees is \u201cnoteworthy\u201d but not unusual.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not uncommon for appropriators to go their own way,\u201d said Todd Harrison, a defense budget expert at the American Enterprise Institute. \u201cAnd they have the ultimate say because they control purse strings. Authorizing committees have a lot less power over specific programs and priorities than people tend to think.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

The compromise bill also requires the Navy secretary to submit a report within 45 days that details the service\u2019s F\/A-XX acquisition strategy; spending plan; and timeline for awarding the engineering-and-manufacturing-development contract, fielding the aircraft, and reaching initial operating capacity. They also want an explanation of what prevented the Navy from spending F\/A-XX funds allocated in previous years.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In June, a U.S. official told reporters that the Defense Department had made \u201ca strategic decision to go all in on F-47\u201d instead of moving ahead immediately on F\/A-XX. The 2026 NDAA reflected that decision, providing only the requested $74 million for F\/A-XX\u2014and $2.6 billion for the Air Force\u2019s next-gen fighter.<\/p>\n

Tuesday\u2019s spending bill added even more to the F-47 effort: just over $500 million, which the bill said would cover a \u201cclassified adjustment\u201d and correct \u201creconciliation funding incongruence.\u201d<\/p>\n

The bill also contained $900 million in research and development funds to keep the E-7 Wedgetail alive. As with the F\/A-XX, the bill \u201cprohibits the use of funds to pause, cancel, or terminate\u201d the radar plane program.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Similar efforts to keep the early warning and control aircraft alive were tucked into a bipartisan agreement to fund the government in November, versions of the NDAA and Defense Appropriations Act this summer, and a stopgap funding bill in September.\n\n<\/svg><\/p>\n<\/div>\n