F-35 News. This sounds fishy.

via AOL

He announced a “bulk buy” program for the U.S. and Joint Strike Fighter program international partners to procure up to 450 F-35s over three years, with 150 bought each year. This is not a multi-year purchase, which is subject to explicit congressional approval. It still needs an OK from the Hill, but this is similar to the purchases made by the Navy of the Virginia-class submarines. If appropriators OK the money, and authorizers do not oppose it, it can go through.
Finally, Davis said that the Thermion deck coating applied to the USS Wasp deck successfully handled the incredible beating from the 40,000 pounds of thrust from the F-35B engine. The coating, though there were visible scorch marks, “performed to standard,” Davis said. “But,” he went on to note, “there’s more work to do.”

This program has gone from criminal incompetence to baffling stupidity.

How is Kendall going to commit to bulk buys of an airplane that is still in development?  So much still doesn't work...ALIS...software still needs to be written....weapons tested, that this has entered the realm of fantasy and malfeasance.

They have officially lost their fucking minds. 

Note:  Will an aviation guy tell me how sensor fusion (they no longer claim that stealth is the key) will enable the F-35 to kill enemy aircraft that fly faster, higher, carry a bigger AESA, have more missiles and will probably outnumber it?

Note 1:  Spudman pointed out (correctly) that this group of military and civilian leaders are making plans that another administration will either have to carry out or cancel...the first bulk buy is in 2018!  They're writing checks that future military and civilian leaders will have to pay for!  Why do I suddenly get the feeling that this is more a "human terrain" exercise to get critics like myself to shut up and accept that the F-35 is going forward?  Well guess what!  BRING THE TROLLING!  I still want this bastard of a program to die.  No, I want this program taken down to the river, have its hands tied behind its back and held underwater till it's feet stop kicking....then we chop it up and feed it to the alligators.