Billionaire Trump ally Elon Musk once more fired insults on the Pentagon’s F-35 program as he prepares to guide the newly-created Division of Authorities Effectivity and advise the White Home on the best way to greatest slash federal spending.
The Tesla and SpaceX founder slammed the “idiots” who proceed to construct manned fighter jets just like the F-35 in a Sunday put up on X, including a trash can emoji.
“The F-35 design was broken at the requirements level, because it was required to be too many things to too many people. This made it an expensive & complex jack of all trades, master of none. Success was never in the set of possible outcomes,” Musk wrote in a separate put up on X on Monday.
“And manned fighter jets are obsolete in the age of drones anyway. Will just get pilots killed.”
Musk has lengthy argued that the Lockheed Martin fighter jets are headed towards obsolescence. The richest particular person on this planet – who has a internet value of $332.5 billion, based on Forbes – has argued that drone warfare is the longer term. Particularly, he has known as for fighter jets which can be remote-controlled by people with the capability for autonomous maneuvers.
“We have combat capable aircraft in operation today and they perform exceptionally well against the threat for which they were designed,” a Pentagon spokesperson advised The Publish. “Pilots continually emphasize that this is the fighter they want to take to war if called upon.”
A Lockheed Martin spokesperson advised Fortune the jets are the “most advanced, survivable and connected fighter aircraft in the world” and that they sit up for working with Trump and his workforce.
Lockheed Martin didn’t instantly reply to The Publish’s requests for remark.
Musk has reignited his assaults on the F-35 jets as he prepares to advise the White Home on large federal finances cuts. It’s unclear whether or not the Pentagon’s F-35 program – its most costly fighter program but – will fall sufferer to the billionaire’s cost-cutting agenda.
The Pentagon’s F-35 prices rose 10% to about $485 billion this yr to cope with overheating points, based on a Bloomberg report.
The US authorities has delivered round 1,000 F-35 jets to its army and allies, out of a complete of greater than 3,000 planes deliberate for manufacturing over its lifetime.
The plane is anticipated to stay in service till 2088 and this system in its entirety is estimated to price greater than $2 trillion, based on the US Authorities Accountability Workplace.
Musk beforehand mentioned DOGE can minimize “at least $2 trillion” from the federal finances.
In a joint opinion piece for The Wall Road Journal, Musk and Ramaswamy took purpose on the Division of Protection.
“The Pentagon recently failed its seventh consecutive audit, suggesting that the agency’s leadership has little idea how its annual budget of more than $800 billion is spent,” Musk and Ramaswamy wrote.
And Musk has definitely laid into the F-35 jets particularly.
“It’s a s–t design,” he wrote in a put up on X on Sunday.
In one other put up, Musk wrote: “Crewed fighter jets are an inefficient way to extend the range of missiles or drop bombs. A reusable drone can do so without all the overhead of a human pilot. And fighter jets will be shot down very quickly if the opposing force has sophisticated SAM or drones, as shown by the Russia-Ukraine conflict.”
“Fighter jets do have the advantage of helping Air Force officers get laid. Drones are much less effective in this regard,” Musk added with a laughing emoji.
Musk mentioned “it is laughably easy to take down fighter jets” as a result of their “stealth” might be defeated with elementary synthetic intelligence and sensitivity cameras.
