It was never in doubt that Boeing was in line for a major bailout, but confirmation came last week with Trump’s announcement that the prime contract for the Next Generation Air Dominance fighter would go to the ailing corporation. Just to make sure, Boeing toadied to the 47th president by dubbing its offering the “F-47.” (Back in 2020 the Navy announced it would name a future carrier“Doris Miller” honoring a black Pearl Harbor hero, hardly acceptable now to an administration busy purging minority heroes from the official record. So expect obsequious admirals to hop to and rename the flattop “Donald Trump”. Can an Army “Fort Trump” be far behind?)

A $30 Million Target

The contract projects $20 billion in development costs alone, with no official projection of what the full program acquisition cost might run to. But the F-47 will not fly alone. Supposedly it will operate in conjunction with “Collaborative Combat Aircraft,” drones, costing a mere $30 million or so a pop, that will operate as unmanned fighters under the overall direction of the F-47 pilot. Two smaller defense contractors, General Atomics and Anduril, are currently contending for the CCA contract and have been touting models of their candidates at trade shows. Prototypes are meant to take to the air this summer, following which the air force will select the lucky winner (or maybe both). Should the Anduril offering, the “Fury,” win the race, it will represent a remarkable achievement, since the vehicle started life as a jet-powered target drone developed by Blue Force, a small North Carolina corporation for a program subsequently cancelled by the air force. Anduril thereupon bought Blue Force on the cheap and the humble target drone was reborn as a futuristic CCA.

What could go wrong? Most likely everything.