The enablers

Day, whatever where the Australian taxpayer isn't being given accurate information on the F-35.

In other news there was reassurance from Defence that the Australian F-35 program milestones would not be affected by US delays in the development of warfighting capability software – perhaps underscored by chief US buyer and Defense Undersecretary Frank Kendall saying at Congress the F-35 was the least of his concerns at the moment.

Too late. The jets were to show (in working order) for 2010-2012.

Here is some more fun.

And, besides the fact that the aircraft will get shot down in combat, how about those statements on Australian industry?

What was Australia told when signing up for the program in 2002?

"Winning just 1 per cent of the project's work would be worth $4 billion to Australian industry, said Industry Minister Ian Macfarlane. But there are no guarantees of additional Australian involvement."
-The Age, $12b for Australia's fighter jets of the future, Mark Forbes, 28 June 2002-

2003: “The project has been billed as a winner for Australian industry with potential earnings of up to $US4 billion ($A7.14 billion)”.
-The Age, Melbourne firm wins US jet fighter contract, 24 June 2003-

2007: "The Australian aerospace industry stands to reap about $9 billion from its involvement in the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program over the next three decades, according to the plane's US developer, Lockheed Martin."
-$9bn bonanza in F-35 deal, 23 March 2007, The Australian-

2010: "Over the 20 year production life of the JSF, the Australian share of work is currently projected to be somewhere between $11.5 and $12 billion, with further opportunities to follow"
-Bob Price, Lockheed Martin’s F-35 Programme Manager, APDR, 15 April 2010-

2011: "The trouble-plagued F-35 Joint Strike Fighter project has claimed its first Australian scalp with a 65-year-old company forced into liquidation this month."
-JSF delays ground Aust parts maker, The Canberra Times, 21 September 2011-

2013: "According to Lockheed Martin, this economic value expected to grow to $5-6 billion as production ramps up over the next three decades, with another $3 billion on top for maintenance and support parts."
-Electronics News, F-35 Joint Strike Fighter: Flying high, Isaac Leung, 5 March 2013-

How about 2015?

“Australian industry is well placed to capitalise on the Government’s investment in the program, winning US$432 million in contracts to date,” AVM Deeble says. “Australian industry stands to win in excess of $1.5 billion in JSF-related production and support work over the life of the JSF program.”
-DMO Bulletin, First Australian-made vertical tails installed on F-35, Issue 1, 2015 -

History: in the 1980's, Australia ordered 75 F-18 Hornets. 2 were built in the U.S. The remainder were assembled at Avalon Airport. The engines were built in Melbourne.