Posted on 03/12/2024 3:21:55 AM PDT by Fish Speaker
WASHINGTON — The US Air Force will request a total of $188.1 billion in the 2025 fiscal year, part of a budget submission that asks lawmakers to greenlight the retirement of 250 aircraft, officials revealed today.
In a Friday briefing with reporters ahead of the budget release, Kristyn Jones, who is performing the duties of the Air Force Undersecretary, said that the service’s budget would grow by about 1.6% compared to the FY24 request of $185.1 billion, an increase of $3 billion. For the Department of the Air Force (DAF), which includes the Space Force, the DAF’s topline would grow from from $215.1 billion in FY24 to $217.5 billion in FY25, an increase of about 1.1%.
“We’re very, very fixated on being competitive with the pacing challenge [of China],” Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall told reporters during the Friday briefing. “I think the budget that we’ve submitted moves us forward — not quite as fast as we would like to, but it moves us forward in the right direction while maintaining the current capabilities that are essential to the nation. So I’m pretty comfortable with what we’re asking for, given the constraints that we have.”
(Excerpt) Read more at breakingdefense.com ...
Pretty soon, the Ukraine will be operating F-16s so they can squander our tactical air munitions like they have blown through our reserves of javelins, stingers and 155mm howitzer shells
“The air force has been run by retards for a very long time. The current crop of leaders is the worst of a long line of declining ability and character. I doubt they could win an air war with Mexico.”
They literally HATE our military - otherwise they wouldn’t be DEMILITARIZING in the middle of a major war, with other major wars looming just around the corner.
I came out against the Ukraine War in large part because the people running the US today literally WANTED TO LOSE THE COLD WAR - so should we be surprised that they setting us up to lose World War 3?
Perhaps, but production of these weapons is ramping up, if we depleted our weapons stocks by minimal support for Ukraine, imagine how long they would have lasted against China.
Europe and US ramping up production might be the best outcome of this war
Think WW2, the collective west was asleep when it came to production. Imagine trying to ramp up production in an active war with China, NK, and Iran
Yes Putin did that
“I doubt they could win an air war with Mexico.”
Sadly, on the serious side we have already lost a war with Mexico without even flying a kite.
Biden has drained not only our military munition reserves but our strategic oil reserves. America is being lead by an Alzheimer Patient...and his leftist advisors.
Just think of how much money they would save if they got rid of all the aircraft in the Air Force?
Very expensive to operate, for most aircraft on this list. The F22s and F15s especially.
Also, can’t give anything to Ukraine without “funding” to cover book value, even if its being disposed of. Thats an absurd rule that accounts for a very large chunk of whats been “spent” on military aid.
30 M1s and 100 Bradleys, in an army thats got @ a thousand tanks in service plus 3000 APCs.
There were also @50 Leopard IIs.
All of this stuff was intended for use vs the Russians in the first place. Thats why it existed.
The US is building about 250 NEW combat aircraft annually, including 150 F35’s. About 2/3 of that goes to US forces and the rest to foreign military sales.
The disposition listed, of combat aircraft, represents about 9 months of aquisitions for the USAF.
(I Photoshopped this a while back in relation to a story about some Jihadi in his vehicle making a getaway somewhere...:)
1. The US munition reserves are unaffected for those categories that matter in a Pacific War. There is an overall shortage for what will be needed for a war with China, but this has been true for the last decade or more.
2. The US is an oil exporter these days, no thanks to Biden. The oil reserve is moot under these circumstances.
These things are useful vs jihadis and the like, but they are of limited value against people with a real air defense system.
So that’s 250 less Pilots required, or there are not enough Pilots to fly them as is? I doubt the Trannies can qualify, let alone want to even attempt to be a Pilot.
AVIATION PING!....................
Sure. Helicopters are another example of that. They are fantastic if you control the air.
If you don’t, they are deathtraps.
There are lots of valid examples. It began in WWII. If you don’t control the air, you don’t control the battlefield. Simple as that.
Can the Marines get the A-10s?
How expensive is it to operate F-16s that are being given to Ukraine ??
My point, if these planes are destined for the Boneyard where they will have near zero value, why not see if they could be used in Ukraine, properly outfitted, they would equal to anything the Russians could put in the air.
With Mexico, sí.
With the cartels? ¡NO!
There are already plenty of F16s on the way to Ukraine committed from ex-Euro (Netherlands, Norway, Denmark) stocks, 50-60 of them AFAIK. The limiting factor is Ukraines ability to operate them.
I guess the F16 C/Ds would be a good addition, if US politics permits.
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