F-35. I love ya (still) but damn it stop spinning me!

I still support the F-35.

I still think it will kick ass.

But the supporters (Talking to you Lockheed Martin, the DoD and especially the Commandant of the Marine Corps) need to get down to brass tacks.

First this from AOL.

WASHINGTON: The official costs of the F-35 program have shrunk, not much, but they are down for the first time.
The Pentagon’s authoritative Selected Acquisition Report says the program is projected to be $4.5 billion less expensive than its last estimate. That’s 1 percent of the program.
F-35 December 2012 SAR
We are trying to get more information. Here’s what the plane’s maker, Lockheed Martin, issued this statement. Not surprisingly, they say they are “pleased” and promise to work with the government to lower them further. Here it is:
“Lockheed Martin is pleased with the $4.5 billion reduction in acquisition, operating and support costs reflected in the 2012 Selected Acquisition Report (SAR 12). This is the first year a cost reduction was noted. We will work with the F-35 Joint Program Office to implement further cost saving measures, which will result in additional significant decreases to the total program cost. The top priority of the government/contractor team is to continue to cost-effectively deliver the F-35s unprecedented 5th generation capabilities to the warfighter.”

A reduction of 4.5 billion dollars is nothing to sneeze at.  But the problem is the accounting that is going on with this program.  Why can't we get plain numbers from the DoD when it comes to the costs.  A PER PLANE FREAKING COST ESTIMATE!  Let me remind you that the EFV was considered too expensive when it busted the 13 million dollar per vehicle barrier....and we were going to buy a little over 1000 of those vehicles.

If we're proceeding with programs that cost well over 100 million dollars per article (I'm talking F-35 and MV-22) then I'm going to have serious heartburn and must ask WTF!

Everytime we get program costs instead of individual costs my spider senses activate and I get the feeling that I'm being spun.   Thats the last thing a controversial program needs.