Air Force details force structure cuts

Dod Buzz ^ | 3/4/2012 | michael Hoffman

[U-238]

Air Force leadership laid out Friday afternoon what units will lose missions and which ones will get new ones with the Air National Guard bearing the brunt of the drawdown.

The Air Force will retire or reclassify aircraft in seven squadrons with four being Air National Guard units. Air Force Secretary Michael Donley announced the service will retire 286 aircraft over the next five years with 227 leaving the fleet in 2013.

Read the exact details of what aircraft are going where and what squadrons will receive new missions over the next five years in the white paper issued by the Air Force Friday at 1 p.m. titled “USAF Force Structure Changes: Sustaining Readiness and Modernizing the Total Force.”

Five A-10 squadrons, one F-16 squadron, and one F-15 training squadron will retire or reclassify to new missions. The F-16 Aggressor Squadron that stood up at Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska, in 2008, the 18th Aggressor Squadron, will transfer to Elmendorf Air Force Base, Alaska.

Friday’s announcement also outlined the bases that had been scheduled to receive C-27s before the Air Force cancelled the program. Seven bases from seven states will lose the mobility aircraft.

[tcrlaf]

Democrats butchering my Air Force, yet again.

[Duckdog]

Are the dems crazy! Were are they going to get all that free air travel now!

[wita]

You can bet they will not be shrinking squadrons flying jet transports worthy of flying in. Twin turbo’s with ability to land on semi prepared surfaces are beneath them.

[Rannug]

But there will still be a base maintainence force of about 1500 at Eielson.

[blueunicorn6]

I’m sure that the money saved by retiring these aircraft will be used for a good purpose like buying Democrat votes.

[Yo-Yo]

Friday’s announcement also outlined the bases that had been scheduled to receive C-27s before the Air Force cancelled the program.

Also an assinine decision.

Originally, the US Army wanted a new theater transport aircraft to replace their aging C-23 Sherpas. The USAF also wanted a smaller capacity theater transport to replace larger and underutilized C-130s.

The USAF convinced the defense department to combine the two programs into one Joint Cargo Aircraft program, and took control of the selection process away from the Army.

Now the USAF is killing the C-27J, and the Army is still flying C-23 Sherpas that need replacing.

[Harley]

The Joint Concept that came out of the Goldwater-Nichols Reorganization Act of 1986 was a step in the right direction to get the fighting forces to work together and accomplish their mission. However, when it comes down to funding, the joint concept disappears. Hate to say this, but it looks like it’s time to redo the 1947 Defense Reorganization Act and recreate the Army Air Corps. With the joining of so many bases like Ft. Lewis/ McChord, Ft. Dix/McGuire it looks like that project has already begun.