F/A-XX Naval Fighter Rescued From Purgatory In New Defense Spending Bill

The House and Senate Appropriations Committees have negotiated a draft defense spending bill that includes nearly $900 million for the U.S. Navy’s F/A-XX next-generation carrier-based combat jet program . The proposed legislation and an accompanying report also aim to finally force the selection of a winner in the stalled F/A-XX competition .

All of this comes after Congress did not reverse the Pentagon’s previously announced plan to effectively freeze the F/A-XX effort in the most recent annual defense policy bill, despite framing the program as fully funded therein . The Senate Appropriations Committee released the text of the draft Defense Appropriations Act for the 2026 Fiscal Year, which is currently consolidated with spending bills for a swath of other government agencies, earlier to