The only chart you need to see to know that America's F-35 is the future of warfare

Nobody spends money on defense like the Stars and Stripes, and that's most evident in the Department of Defense's annual Selected Acquisition Reports (SARs) to Congress.

Detailing the status, plans, and funding requirements for nearly 80 major defense-acquisition programs, SARs provide a glimpse into America's war-machine portfolio.

Compiling the most recently publicly released SARs and a few other estimates, the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments (CSBA) published the "Weapons Systems Factbook." CSBA projects that the Pentagon's top programs will need $321 billion for the Future Years Defense Program (spanning FY 2017 to FY 2021) plus an additional $410 billion in FY 2022 and beyond.

The following graphic outlines money spent (red), money needed right now (green), and money needed for the future (blue). Take a look and you can't help but notice America's F-35 Lightning II takes the lead, with projected spending in the years to come far higher than any other program.

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