Posted on 12/29/2004 10:27:10 AM PST by Max Combined
NEW YORK (Reuters) - The Pentagon (news - web sites) is planning sharp cuts in the Air Force's program for its new F/A-22 fighter jet in a move budget analysts said was intended to offset mounting U.S. deficits and the growing costs of the Iraq (news - web sites) war, Wednesday's New York Times reported.
The newspaper said the Pentagon's decision, which four administration and Congressional officials described on Tuesday and which Congress must still approve, comes as the Bush administration is pressing all agencies to scale back spending requests for the fiscal year 2006 budget, which will be submitted to lawmakers early next year.
The U.S. Air Force has estimated the total F/A-22 acquisition program for 277 planes will run about $72 billion, making it the most expensive fighter jet in history. The aircraft, known as the Raptor, is due to enter service in December 2005.
Dennis Boxx, a spokesman for the plane's manufacturer and the nation's largest military contractor, Lockheed Martin Corp., said the company had not been notified of any changes in the program's status.
The Times said the Pentagon had told the White House and Congress about the planned cuts, although senior Pentagon and Air Force officials were still discussing details.
The newspaper quoted leading industry analyst Loren Thompson as saying the program could be ended after producing about 160 aircraft. He said the proposed cuts reflected "the convergence of severe budgetary pressures imposed by the Iraq war with some long-standing preferences among senior policymakers for less emphasis on conventional weapons programs."
Defense Department spokesman Eric Ruff declined to discuss any specific decisions on the Raptor program, the paper reported, but said Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld had spoken with lawmakers in recent days "to discuss long-term modifications to the tactical fighter programs."
Ruff said the Pentagon's proposals ensured that the F/A-22 and another aviation priority, the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, "would remain healthy."
I guess militarily we will be behind the French now.
wtf, did John Kerry win or something?
Oh, FFS.
JUST BUY THE THING ALREADY.
Would the program have dragged on this long if the YF-23 had gotten selected? I mean assuming Congress didn't cut it due to Northrop's scandal at the time.
And there goes that job I applied for at Pratt & Whitney here in CT...
Possibly there's something else in the pipeline we don't know about?
That's what I thought - could directed energy weapons replace fighter jets in some respects?
Rummy is going for the next generation-unmanned fighter planes. By the time China catches up to that they will be a democracy.
Sounds like the Bush administration is punishing Georgia for electing two Senators and a Governor from the same party.
100% correct - This is a bad move - Lets hope the Navy gets the F-23 program running within the next 3 to 5 years -
And lets also hope this cut of the F-22 doesn't come to pass -
China is the gathering threat for sure. Although none of the older generation Russian fighter/bombers grab superiority over ours, if a conflict takes place 7-10 years out, the F-15 and F-16 may not get the job done given their long years in service and no meaningful upgrades in recent years.
The fact that China is accumulating aircraft/weapons from the Russians and participating in joint exercises with them does not bode well for Taiwan or the Far East.
The F-22 will ensure future air superiority and with our help Taiwan should control the Straights. Both would keep the Red Chinese at bay.
Is the F23 the joint strike fighter?
If it is...
I am not too big on that one.
Anything that promises to be all things to all people, usaually ends-up being mediocare at doing multiple things.
If I want to put a nail into a piece of wood, I use a hammer. While a brick can do the same thing it doesn't work as well as a hammer and the last time I checked you can't build a house out of hammers.
Indian Air Force was floating a proposal around the Pentagon about outsourcing air superiority, guess Rummy bought into that.
NO - that is the F-35 (of which I agree, in many ways I am not a fan of this aircraft either) -
The F-23 would be the true replacement of the F-14 Tomcat (and really be able to do it's needed job....not like the current F-18 Super Bug is trying to do) -
the idea is to have a working assembly line, hopefully one that is at least capable of higher production rates. if we actually get to a point where it looks like we will need them, believe me, they will get built, and in a hurry. if the F35 is well above the F22 in capability, and isn't too far down the road, it may be worth waiting. particulary if the the robotic fighter starts to come into its own as another option.
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