The military - all branches - has only been allotted finite funds for rebuilding after the obama years.
Trump is making great strides in bringing them all up to combat readiness, but there are many branches. The Navy is way-low on ships, and planes. The Air Force, on planes; and I’m sure the other branches have their dire needs as well.
So, it comes down to PRIORITIES.
Any “parts” needed to make those planes flyable, are probably NOT made on the Florida coast. If the USAF hasn’t received said parts from said manufacturer, then said mechanics can’t put the said parts on the said planes to make them flyable.
Meanwhile, the aircraft that ARE airworthy were hustled out of there with all available pilots.
Aircraft mechanics don’t just sit around awaiting the parts...or the hurricane. They’ve got a lot more equipment to tend to, GPU Units, test gear, tools, tie downs, etc. I imaging for at least five days before Michael hit, the place was a bee hive of activity in getting ready.
The building and testing of the f-22 is supervised at Wright-Patterson AFB, in Wisconsin, so they need to share the “lack of parts” blame? They’re not in a hurricane zone.
There are 183 Raptors in the USAF inventory. Many of these storm-damaged one can probably be repaired, and they’re now bringing on the f-35.
We’re upgrading the Atlantic fleet, building new aircraft carriers, and giving the troops a well-deserved raise.
Now, exactly WHO do you want to blame for these damaged aircraft? What do you expect to be done that that person? Drawn and quartered? Life in prison? Shot at dawn?
I don’t know if you were in the military, or not...I was. Many factors determine their priorities, and at the operational level, the cost probably comes last, right after life and limb.
So, let’s all just cool our jets and wait on an official determination before we start pointing fingers.
I would like to add that I put the blame for the lack of spare parts on Obama and the republicans that went along with the sequester. Even though President Trump has increase military funding, some of the spares have long lead times, up to 2 or 3 years. And as you have so eloquently stated:
If the USAF hasn’t received said parts from said manufacturer, then said mechanics can’t put the said parts on the said planes to make them flyable.
I would also like to give a shout out to the military wives... most of the pilots that flew a plane to Wright-Patt left a wife and kids to deal with the hurricane on their own. I cannot imagine the stress they are under now.
Sounds like the entire program has been poorly run. It is a relatively new plane, and we have no spare parts? Ten percent of the aircraft lost in one event. If it was ten or twenty aircraft losing one or two is understandable. Is this strategic incompetence to get rid of this aircraft as quickly as possible?
What do you expect to be done that that person? Drawn and quartered? Life in prison? Shot at dawn?
Spare everyone the melodrama.