@Commander Cody: thanks for that.
and as for this
There is some concern that with a schedule that long, other fiefdoms will try and grab some of the FVL-M money for their own pet projects. Also, with all the Congressional and Presidential elections before IOC, it'll be hard to keep political support focused given that politicians voting the money won't be able to point at something for which they can claim credit in the next election for quite a while. OTOH, the interest shown in FVL-M by all the services and potential foreign operators will be a big help.
Yeah, funding grabs and Congressional "wisdom" like what brought us F-35.
Part of the terrain, I guess. But it still grates on the nerves.