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Intel: US boots Turkey from F-35 program after Russian arms deal

The Donald Trump administration said today it would formally kick Turkey out of the F-35 program after Ankara took delivery of a Russian air defense system that could threaten the American fighter’s stealth capabilities.

A Lockheed Martin F-35 aircraft is seen at the ILA Air Show in Berlin, Germany, April 25, 2018.    REUTERS/Axel Schmidt - RC1286FBA9D0
A Lockheed Martin F-35 aircraft is seen at the ILA Air Show in Berlin, Germany, April 25, 2018. — REUTERS/Axel Schmidt

The Donald Trump administration said today it would formally kick Turkey out of the F-35 program after Ankara took delivery of a Russian air defense system that could threaten the American fighter’s stealth capabilities.

In a White House statement sent five days after Turkey began taking deliveries of the Moscow-made S-400, press secretary Stephanie Grisham said the F-35 “cannot coexist with a Russian intelligence collection platform that will be used to learn about its advanced capabilities.”

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