NICE: Pentagon And Lockheed Martin Agree To Big Cost Reduction On F-35 Fighters. “The agreement, disclosed October 29, will reduce the unit cost of all three variants by an average of 12.7% across three production lots. The most common variant, to be used by the Air Force and nearly a dozen overseas allies, will cost less than $80 million to manufacture—below the cost of buying a new F-16, the legacy fighter F-35 is supposed to replace.”