For those who haven't been reading us regularly, the statement also says that the president's "personal involvement in the F-35 program accelerated the negotiations and sharpened our focus on driving down the price."

Lockheed Martin has promised the F-35A will drop below $85 million by 2019. And the leader of the F-35 Joint Program Office, Lt. Gen. Chris Bogdan, has promised it will hit between $80 million and $85 million for the plane and its engines. The engines are technically a separate program. The latest costs include the engine and assorted other costs.

One area where the F-35 is still expensive? The cost per hour to fly, which over the lifetime of the plane can amount to more than the plane itself. The F-35A still costs a whopping $42,169 per hour to fly. Assuming a plane flies 120 hours a year, over 20 years that comes out to $100 million. The Super Hornet costs about $17,000 an hour to fly, which comes out to $40 million.