Australian Refused to Guarantee to Buy F-35 JSF

Defence Minister Stephen Smith has refused to guarantee Australia will buy 100 US-built F-35 Joint Strike Fighters, saying the project is getting close to the cost and delay overruns Defence built into the order. The Government has placed a tentative order for 100 of the stealth aircraft to replace its ageing fleet of less-capable F/A-18 Hornets and the now-retired F-111 fighter-bomber. Speaking in the United States before a meeting with defence secretary Leon Panetta, Mr Smith says Australia has made it clear the order, at present, is for only 14. "We are also in the market for Joint Strike Fighters beyond 14, but we haven't placed a firm order or commitment for any more than 14," Mr Smith told ABC News Breakfast. He said Australia built into the project "capacity for slippage" in terms of cost and delay but "we are starting to rub up against that". "We are very conscious there have been both cost and schedule delays, and that will form a part of my conversations with not just secretary of defence [Leon] Panetta but also with other officials."