Posted on 01/23/2020 5:19:23 PM PST by E. Pluribus Unum
Burdened by old, maintenance-heavy Cold War-era planes, the Air Force needs a cash bump to meet its obligations to the National Defense Strategy, according to a report from a respected defense think-tank.
But growing the force in size isn’t enough alone, according to the Jan. 22 report, which makes four other key recommendations.
The report by the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments says that the Air Force needs to be able to operate inside the reach of China and Russia’s long-range missile systems—a zone of military discomfort called a “contested environment.”
To achieve this, it needs more stealth aircraft, more drones, and to be able to hunker down in better-protected allied airbases. It also needs to pack next-generation weapons such as hypersonic missiles, along with incorporating technology that allows the military to integrate and function as a whole team.
“Creating a more range-balanced, survivable, and lethal force will require a commitment by DoD and the Congress to significantly increase the Air Force’s annual budgets,” says the report.
The Pentagon will put forward its 2021 defense budget proposal in the spring, which will go through the grinder of Congress in the autumn.
Most analysts agree that the Air Force is dragged back by having too many old aircraft, which are more costly to maintain.
(Excerpt) Read more at theepochtimes.com ...
Hmmmmm. Why do they need drones now that we have a Space Force. I think the Air Force and Space Force will need to sit down and iron out what programs each are going to do. That would help with the budget problems. Probably a lot of programs that the Air Force is doing can be transferred to the Space Force. Also if they think that the House is going to raise the Defense spending again? I would be shocked. 700 billion is quite a penny every single year.
PJ’s and CCT’s need drones.
GO SPACE FORCE! BEAT ARMY!
Venus is so bright where I am at tonight I thought it was a drone ... still looks like it has wings
the Air Force needs....
an audit.
Then when it comes time to build the air strips there is no money left so they have to get more to become "mission capable".
The Marines and Army build what ever their mission requires first and then builds the housing and amenities which are "substandard" according to the Air Force.
Pardon me for not getting out my wallet.
Cut back on the golf courses, and they’ll have plenty of money.
Yeah,but the Air Force has the best par 4 18 hole course in the DOD.
Cc
“the Air Force needs....
an audit.”
The Airforce has a budget system in place in which every penny can be accounted for.
On the other hand, all of the non-DOD government agencies are the ones who need audits.
Space Force is NOT for combat air support of troops on the ground. Drones are highly useful for supporting ground troops.
“The Marines and Army build what ever their mission requires first and then builds the housing and amenities which are “substandard” according to the Air Force.”
Exactly!
When I was stationed at Ft. Polk, the Airforce weenies living in the barracks collected full housing allowance because our barracks were “substandard” despite the fact that their barracks were the first of the newly renovated ones and had better amenities than the rest of the barracks that were renovated later on where the contractors cut corners due to budget constraints.
Are the Airmen that died in Afghanistan and Iraq “weenies”?
Just wondering.
Perhaps our Air Force generals have been reading too many Mike Maden books, who is the guy who writes for Tom Clancy now. He has one called, “Drone” which I really like the premise as our president takes out all of the drug cartels leaders and put in a new leader from Mexico. I kind of like that theme.
That’s astigmatism. Corrective lenses or surgery can usually fix that. It frequently gets worse at night, when your pupils open up wider.
When I was heading to meet my new ship for Gulf War I, in Jan 1991, I got stuck on Diego Garcia for a week, trying to get there. For the first and only time in my career, I slept in a "comfortable" barracks room, while all the USAF guys slept in tents near the busy 24/7 flight line. Those poor flyboys were used to staying in hotels on per diem, because barracks are "substandard".
And before all you Marines and Infantry guys give me crap, yes, I enjoyed my air conditioned spaces on ships, TV, telephones, good food, no dust or dirt, etc. All I can say is "thank you for your service".
Dang ... just one more thing to add on the list
“Diego Garcia”
I spent time there twice ... about 2 weeks each time
I really wanted to explore, didn’t happen. Cool Place (Actually One Season... Hot as Hell) but I think I am finally over the massive hangover (I heard someone finally caught Hector)
Second time the Marine Corps Dog started hanging out with us so we shaved our Squadron ID on him... he hung out with us until we left so no one got hurt.
I love my Marine buddies but they need to buy a sense of humor
In the 1950s, the Air Force recommended abolition of the Navy because “all that would be needed was 10,000 bombers loaded with nukes to keep the peace.” Badly managed asshats.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.