Stealth fighter F-22 Raptor sustainment (FASTER): ~$8.82B — a long-term sustainment contract with Lockheed Martin (USAspending)
Per USAspending, the sustainment program "FASTER" for the U.S. Air Force stealth fighter "F-22 Raptor" was awarded to Lockheed Martin. The value is about $8.82 billion ($8,821,412,144), a definitive contract running 2008–August 2024. A prime example that equipment is not "buy and done": keeping a fleet flying costs vast sums across its whole life.
Contract key facts
- RecipientLockheed Martin
- Contract value$8,821,412,144 (≈$8.82B)
- BranchDefense-wide
- Awarding agencyDepartment of Defense
- Awarding sub-agencyDefense Contract Management Agency
- Award typeDEFINITIVE CONTRACT
- Period of performance2008-01-01 〜 2024-08-29
- Contract ID (PIID)FA861108C2897
Contract scope (original)
FOLLOW-ON AGILE SUSTAINMENT TO THE RAPTOR (FASTER)
Key points
- The F-22 Raptor sustainment program "FASTER" was awarded to Lockheed Martin. Cumulative ~$8.82B ($8,821,412,144).
- Definitive contract, performance January 2008 – August 29, 2024.
- The F-22 is a fifth-generation stealth fighter for U.S. Air Force air superiority (new production ended).
- Sustainment — the cost of keeping purchased equipment flying — piles up across its whole life, often exceeding acquisition cost.
- Paired with the in-production F-35, it shows a fighter shifting from acquisition to sustainment over its life.
Equipment procurement draws attention to buying new, but in reality the "cost of continuing to use it after purchase (sustainment)" piles up to vast sums across an aircraft's whole life. Parts supply, inspection and repair, upgrades, technical support — without this steady underpinning, even an expensive fighter cannot keep flying.
This contract, "FASTER (Follow-on Agile Sustainment To the Raptor)," is precisely the program to keep the F-22 Raptor flying.
The F-22 is a fifth-generation stealth fighter that handles U.S. Air Force air superiority. Its production numbers were limited and new production has already ended, so keeping existing aircraft flying long and at high readiness matters greatly.
If the F-35 covered separately on this site is at the "continuing production" stage, the F-22 is at the "keep maintaining what you have" stage; placing them side by side reveals how a fighter shifts its center of gravity from acquisition to sustainment over its life.
A cumulative ~$8.82B, running from 2008 to 2024, shows that a sustainment contract — unlike a one-off purchase — requires continuous cost over the long term. The description (USAspending) goes as far as the sustainment program name and does not detail individual work (this site does not fill in what the description omits).
Why it matters
Sustainment accounts for a large part of equipment lifecycle cost and often exceeds acquisition. For aircraft like the F-22 whose new production has ended, keeping existing aircraft at high readiness makes sustainment all the more important. Attending to sustainment, not just acquisition, reveals the real shape of defense spending and its lifecycle-cost structure. Useful to readers tracking the defense industry and security.
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Sources (primary)
This article is an independent organization based on the U.S. official spending data below. Verify the exact, latest details with the official source.
- USAspending (award details)
- Contract ID (PIID)：FA861108C2897