Key authorizers back second F-35 engine

Defying the Obama administration, leaders of the House and Senate Armed Services committees have agreed to authorize $560 million in the fiscal 2010 defense authorization bill to pay for a second engine for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, according to several congressional aides.

The agreement on the engine, one of the most contentious issues during closed-door negotiations on the measure, could provoke the administration to follow through on its veto threat if officials determine that continuing work on an alternative to the primary engine jeopardizes the F-35 program.

The House-passed bill authorized $603 million for the alternate engine, which is produced by General Electric Co. and the British firm Rolls Royce. But the Senate nixed the engine during this summer's floor debate on the authorization measure amid arguments from the Pentagon that the primary engine built by Pratt & Whitney was sufficient.

Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Carl Levin, D-Mich., House Armed Services Committee Chairman Ike Skelton, D-Mo., and House Armed Services Committee ranking member Howard (Buck) McKeon, R-Calif., all favored continuing the alternate engine program in the belief that competition would lead to an improved product and reduced costs.

Senate Armed Services ranking member John McCain, R-Ariz., has been among the most vocal opponents of the engine program, arguing that the benefits would never outweigh the upfront costs to taxpayers. Defense Secretary Robert Gates wrote lawmakers this summer that continuing development of the second engine "will likely impede the progress of the overall F-35 program."

In a move that could be intended to placate the administration, the authorizers dropped a House provision that would have allowed the Air Force to spend only 75 percent of the research and development funding appropriated for the F-35 program until the Pentagon acquisition chief certifies that funding for the second engine has been obligated.

Meanwhile, the authorizers agreed to a $6 billion administration request to buy 30 F-35s in fiscal 2010. The House bill authorized funds for only 28 F-35s.

The House-passed Defense Appropriations bill includes $560 million for the second engine. Although the Senate spending bill contains no money for the program, Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Daniel Inouye, D-Hawaii, and ranking member Thad Cochran, R-Miss., have long supported the alternate engine.

A formal conference meeting on the authorization bill is planned Wednesday, with a House vote on the final bill expected Thursday. The Senate would likely vote on the bill next week.