McCain: Congress should scrap fighter jet plans to pay for Iraq

Congress should consider canceling plans for producing Lockheed Martin Corp.'s F/A-22 fighter airplane to pay for funding for troop increases in Iraq, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., said Sunday on NBC's "Meet the Press."

The $257 million per-plane F/A-22 is set to replace the F-15C as the top U.S. air fighter. The F/A-22 is being tested by the Pentagon to determine whether it should go into full production, Bloomberg News reported.

"We've got to change the way that we do business and put priority where it belongs, and that is making sure that we succeed in Iraq,'' said McCain.

The F/A-22 was conceived during the Reagan administration. Last month, the General Accounting Office said the Air Force had not provided a post-Cold War rationale for why the F/A-22 should proceed into full production.