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Feb 2, 2010

Gates fires general



Defense Secretary Robert Gates sacked Monday the general in charge of the F-35 fighter jet program and said he would withhold funds from Lockheed Martin over a series of cost overruns and delays. -- PHOTO: AFP

WASHINGTON - DEFENSE Secretary Robert Gates sacked Monday the general in charge of the F-35 fighter jet program and said he would withhold funds from Lockheed Martin over a series of cost overruns and delays. 'The progress and performance of the F-35 over the past two years has not been what it should,' said Mr Gates, adding, 'a number of key goals and benchmarks were not met.' The Pentagon will withhold US$614 million (S$866 million) in performance fees from lead contractor Lockheed Martin, he said.

Mr Gates said he took the decision because 'the taxpayer should not have to bear the entire burden of getting the JSF (Joint Strike Fighter) program back on track.' The move was taken with the agreement of Lockheed Martin, he told a news conference to present the Pentagon's defense budget. Mr Gates said his department also bore blame for the 'troubling performance record' of the Joint Strike Fighter and fired the Marine officer in charge of the program, Major General David Heinz, who was named last year.

He said a higher-ranking, three-star general would take over the post, reflecting the importance of the F-35 project. Mr Gates has not hesitated to sack a number of top officers and officials during his tenure as defense secretary since 2006. He said the move was part of his effort to set a tone that 'when things go wrong, people will be held accountable.' Both Mr Gates and President Barack Obama have repeatedly warned that they will not tolerate the kind of delays and cost overruns that have plagued weapons programs in the past. -- AFP