Japan may cancel orders for Lockheed Martin's F-35 fighter jets in the case of a price rise or delivery delay, Defense Minister Naoki Tanaka said on Wednesday, putting Tokyo's choice of next-generation combat aircraft in doubt.
Tokyo has warned Washington against increasing the price, but this was the first time Tanaka had raised the possibility of cancelling the order in public.
The Pentagon this month confirmed plans to put off orders for 179 F-35s over the next five years to save $15.1 billion, a move that a Lockheed executive said would increase the price of the radar-evading warplane. (Reuters)
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