U.S. Senate panel authorizes $9.1 billion for 95 F-35 jets made by Lockheed

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee said on Thursday it had authorized $9.1 billion to produce 95 F-35 aircraft in its version of the 2021 National Defense Authorization Act, or NDAA, an annual bill setting policy for the Department of Defense.

The F-35 is made by Lockheed Martin Corp . The Senate committee also authorized the U.S. Air Force to modify six F-35s originally sold to Turkey. The jets were never delivered to Turkish soil due to a disagreement over Ankara’s purchase of the Russian-made S-400 missile defense system the Pentagon said was “incompatible” with the stealthy F-35 jets.

(Reporting by Patricia Zengerle and Mike Stone; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)