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There is no single hourly price for a fighter jet: the answer depends on the aircraft and variant, the year, and which costs are counted. The latest comparable U.S. government analysis, from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), puts recent F-35A operating-and-support costs per flying hour at roughly the same level as the F-15C/D and F-15E, below the F-22, and above the F-16C/D. CBO’s figures are in 2023 dollars and use data through 2023; they are not a universal price for one hour in any fighter.
What does “cost per flying hour” include?
A per-hour figure is meaningful only when its accounting measure is clear. CBO compares operating and support (O&S) costs per flying hour. It defines O&S as recurring aircraft operating expenses, including fuel and maintenance, plus associated military personnel costs. The measure includes depot-level maintenance, but excludes aircraft procurement and research and development. CBO’s June 2025 report presents costs in 2023 dollars and analyzes data through 2023.
That is different from an acquisition price, a sustainment projection over an aircraft’s lifetime, or an annual cost per aircraft. Those figures may all be called “costs” in reports, but they answer different questions.
How do fighter-jet hourly costs compare?
CBO’s recent comparison is qualitative: its report text describes the relative positions of several U.S. aircraft fleets rather than giving one universal hourly rate. The chart comparisons are in thousands of 2023 dollars per flying hour. The report does not provide 2024 cost data, so these findings should not be presented as 2024 or 2026 rates.
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| Aircraft comparison | CBO’s recent O&S cost per flying hour comparison |
|---|---|
| F-35A and F-15C/D | Similar |
| F-35A and F-15E | Similar |
| F-35A and F-22 | F-35A lower |
| F-35A and F-16C/D | F-35A higher |
| F-35B and AV-8B | F-35B fell below the AV-8B for the first time in 2023; the AV-8B fleet is much older |
| F-35C and other Navy fighters | F-35C generally remained higher, but the difference narrowed as F-35C costs declined and costs for older Navy fleets rose |
The F-35A, F-35B, and F-35C are different service variants, not interchangeable cost observations. Even within a variant, fleet age, maintenance demands, flying activity, and the accounting period affect the comparison. The table describes the CBO comparisons, not the cost of every individual sortie or aircraft.
Why the hourly rate changes with flying activity
Fleet O&S spending is not made up only of expenses that rise directly with each hour flown. Some costs continue even when aircraft fly less. When a fleet’s costs are divided across fewer flying hours, those fixed costs can raise the calculated cost per hour even if annual spending changes little. Conversely, a higher number of flying hours can spread fixed expenses across more activity.
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CBO’s 2024 flying-activity figures provide context, not prices: the F-35A averaged 195 hours per aircraft, the F-15E 197, the F-22 143, and the F-16C/D 122. These are hours flown per aircraft in 2024, not the flying hours used to calculate the report’s through-2023 cost comparisons. Readiness and availability also matter: an hourly cost alone does not show how many aircraft were mission-capable or how much usable capacity a service received for its spending.
What other F-35 cost figures do—and do not—tell you
Several frequently quoted F-35 numbers are useful for understanding the program’s scale, but none is a flight-hour price.
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- More than $5 billion in 2023: CBO’s total O&S spending for the F-35 program that year. It is a programwide fleet total, not a per-aircraft or per-hour figure.
- Nearly $3.2 billion in 2023: CBO’s O&S cost for the F-35A fleet, not an individual aircraft or flying hour.
- $6.6 million per aircraft annually: The Air Force’s projected annual cost to operate and sustain an individual F-35, as reported by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) in April 2024. It is not an hourly rate. The Air Force’s affordability target had been raised to $6.8 million per aircraft per year in June 2023, above its original $4.1 million target. GAO’s report also says the projected lifetime F-35 sustainment cost was $1.58 trillion in 2023, up from $1.1 trillion in 2018; those are program lifetime estimates, not flight-hour prices.
Another broad number can also be misread: GAO reported $57.2 billion in combined Navy, Marine Corps, and Air Force spending to operate and sustain tactical aircraft during fiscal years 2018–2023. It covers tactical aircraft spending across those services, not a fighter-specific hourly rate. GAO’s separate review found aircraft availability generally did not meet service goals, underscoring why spending per hour alone is not a complete measure of what a fleet delivers. The October 2024 GAO report covers that spending and readiness context.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How to evaluate a fighter-jet cost claim
Before comparing two hourly figures, check that they use the same basis:
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- Cost definition: Is the number O&S, sustainment, a reimbursable rate, or another accounting measure? Are personnel and depot maintenance included? Are procurement and research and development excluded?
- Aircraft and variant: Is the figure for an F-35A, F-35B, F-35C, or another aircraft? Variants operate in different services and should not be treated as identical.
- Period and dollars: Which year’s costs are included, and have they been adjusted for inflation? CBO’s comparison uses 2023 dollars and data through 2023.
- Denominator and use: How many flying hours were used to calculate the rate? A change in flying activity can change the hourly result even if some annual costs remain steady.
- Readiness context: Does the comparison say anything about aircraft availability or mission capability, or only the amount spent per hour?
For a defensible numeric answer, a source needs to name the aircraft and variant, reporting year, cost definition, and flying-hour denominator. Without those details, a standalone figure risks comparing unlike measures.
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