Rand Corporation asks whether “joint fighter programs save money” and concludes that “unless the participating services have identical, stable requirements, the U.S. Department of Defense should avoid future joint fighter and other complex joint aircraft development programs.”  

Key findings:

• “Joint Aircraft Programs Have Not Historically Saved Overall Life Cycle Cost”
• “Joint Strike Fighter Is Not on the Path to Achieving the Savings Anticipated at Milestone B”
• “The Difficulty of Reconciling Diverse Service Requirements in a Common Design Is a Major Factor in Joint Cost Outcomes”
• “Joint Aircraft Programs Have Historically Been Associated with a Shrinking Combat Aircraft Industrial Base”
• “Joint Aircraft Programs Could Increase Operational and Strategic Risk to Warfighters”