Posted on 04/11/2014 2:17:41 PM PDT by blueplum
The National Guard is following a direct order — but it’s not happy with it.
All of the Guard’s AH-64 Apache helicopters are scheduled to go to the active Army, and there’s nothing its top brass can do about it.
“None of us like what we’re having to do,” National Guard Chief Gen. Frank Grass told members of the Senate Armed Services Committee on Tuesday, the military website Defense One reported. “My big concern right now is figuring out how I’m going to move, and how many states I’m going to have an impact on, and what’s the cost of facilities and to retrain pilots. I’ve got to tackle that because the decision’s been made.”
Air Force Maj. Shannon Thomas, a spokeswoman for the Guard, reiterated the general’s position, the Army Times reported.
“These are very difficult decisions and there will be more difficult ones yet to come,” she said. “His focus now is to determine the impacts and how best to implement the decision.”
Army Chief of Staff Gen. Ray Odierno told members of Congress on Tuesday that the move will save $12 billion through fiscal year 2017, Defense One reported.
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtontimes.com ...
More drones.
What interesting times.
Army Chief of Staff Gen. Ray Odierno told members of Congress on Tuesday that the move will save $12 billion through fiscal year 2017, Defense One reported.
How and why will this save all of this money?
So all CONUS Apaches are going to be Federalized?
They already were.
/johnny
Sure, if Texas has a cool Billion to pay for them, their support chain and the training.
The Feds need those vicious, mean ATTACK helicopters out in Nevada.
They are replacing the Apache’s with Black Hawks for the Nat. Guard. The Apache’s are replacing the one abuse by the harsh terrain of most Trashcanistan countries they have been working in over the last decade and since they are not being manufactured, they are being swapped out. Why go ape sh*t over a story without all the info?
/johnny
Probably could, just from Natural Gas revenues. Would have to convince Boeing to crank up their assembly line, though.
“How and why will this save all of this money?”
Decades ago the national guard got obsolete equipment. But Congress began to boost income to the defense companies by giving first line equipment to the guard. This has to do with scratching the backs of big lobbyists. The allocation of defense money is all about political power and has nothing to do with the country’s defense needs. Another example of power is Congress giving Oshkosh, General Defense and Force protection money to supply tank-like vehicles to your local police. Do your local police need them? No. But that doesn’t matter as the whole thing is about spending the money with the “correct” recipient. Another example is the Army has been trying to shut down new M1A2 production in Lima for at least five years and Congress will not allow it.
None of this is new. At the tail end of the Civil War Congress allocated money to buy thousands of obsolete muzzle loading rifles that spent the next 100 years in a warehouse as the army couldn’t even give them away.
It’s about who controls what money. Not the good of the nation.
this is all about the pre-mature retiring of the Army’s excellent and upgraded OH-58 Kiowa warrior observation helo . Throughout all the CAB in the Army these effective little choppers are being cut by the Hagel ‘ budget axe’ and the idea is to replace that OH ( observation) function with an AH ( attack helo ) capacity . Really really ill advised as they are two entirely different and mutually supportive missions .
However now all those NG Apaches will be assigned to the regular Army CABs , to serve as observation AND attack helos .
More crappy planning and execution by a regime that doesn’t know it’s ass from a hole in the ground .
This is a completely misleading headline and a lame article. The purpose of the AH-64 Apache is to provide for the nation’s defense, not to prop up the ego of states Adjutants General. The Apache is being shifted to the Active Army in order to replace the reconnaissance helicopters that cannot be retained due to budget cuts. The Active Army has to be priority in this case, but it doesn’t sit well with pompous politicians and their political Guard generals.
The Army is having to make do with what they’ve got, since it’s much more important to provide more money for entitlement programs, new Obamaphones, and unworkable green energy schemes.
I’ve yet to see any govt program “save money”.
Blame Obama and his Defense cuts.
welcome...
welcome to 1978, jimmah cahtah all over again
Well, isn’t that special.
“Decades ago the national guard got obsolete equipment. But Congress began to boost income to the defense companies by giving first line equipment to the guard. This has to do with scratching the backs of big lobbyists.”
Not exactly.
Guards used to be equipped with out-dated and obsolete equipment and thereby unable to hit the line capable and fully integrated with the regular Army (and Air Force).
The equipping was to do with standardizing equipment, force-multiplying and integrated operations by having the same kit and capability. . .sharing the same training, logistics support and supply train as well. It actually saved money by doing so.
And lobbyists do not have the power many think they do. Politicians listen to lobbyists, from labor unions to defense contractors to other industries. . .so they learn about the product.
Lobbyists have to be careful because if they try and pressure the politician then the lobbyist is thrown out of the office and his competition now has access to the politicos.
And who do the politico’s listen to?
Voters.
Voters are the ones with the power, they are the one’s the politico’s try to keep happy, not the lobbyists, as the voters vote and if you keep your constituency happy then you get lots of votes and win elections.
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