Navy to Trim Purchase of F-14s by 25%
A reduction in the Pentagon’s fiscal 1986 budget already approved by President Reagan will force the Navy to chop its purchase of F-14 fighters by 25%, according to a high-ranking official.
Instead of proceeding with a plan to acquire 24 of the front-line jets during the year starting next Oct. 1, Navy Secretary John F. Lehman and Defense Secretary Caspar W. Weinberger have decided to submit a budget that calls for the purchase of 18 of the aircraft, even though the change will ultimately prove more expensive, the source said.
The cut, to be formally unveiled when the President’s budget is submitted to Congress on Feb. 4, will save about “one-third of a billion dollars in fiscal 1986, but it will drive up the unit cost by $3 million per plane and, in the long term, end up costing more for the taxpayer,” said the source, who agreed to discuss the matter only if not identified.
The source has participated in the Pentagon’s budget deliberations.
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