Fri, May 08, 2009
$17 Billion Cut... But Trillions More Spent Elsewhere
The Obama Administration, in the process of spending trillions
of dollars for all manner of programs and projects, is trumpeted
the 17 Billion dollars it is trying to cut from the Federal Budget.
Rather than try to digest them all en masse, we'll look at each of
them one at a time and allow you to make up YOUR mind as to the
rationale and wisdom for the decisions included below. Herewith;
another of the programs on the chopping block that has an aviation
or aerospace connotation.
From the 'Terminations, Reductions, and Savings' document
published this week by the OMB, as part of the FY 2010 US
Budget:
Proposal: The Administration proposes to
terminate the F-22 Raptor program after production of the planned
187 aircraft because the Department of Defense (DOD) has determined
that 187 F-22s, together with other fighter aircraft including the
new Joint Strike Fighter now in production, will be able to meet
foreseeable threats.
Justification: This proposal would terminate
procurement of the F-22 Raptor after 2009 when the current
multiyear procurement contract ends. In December 2004, DOD
determined that 183 F-22s would be sufficient to meet its needs.
The Administration's current plans would provide a total of 187
aircraft, including four additional F-22s funded in the 2009
supplemental request to replace legacy aircraft lost in the war
theater. Once these 187 aircraft are built, the production line
will close. Both the Government Accountability Office and
Congressional Budget Office have questioned the affordability of
continuing the F-22 program, at about $3.5 billion per year, while
simultaneously making other large procurements, such as the Joint
Strike Fighter.
Moreover, several reviews within DOD, for example the 2006
Quadrennial Defense Review, have confirmed that 187 F-22s, together
with the planned growth in the fleet of Joint Strike Fighters to
2,443, will meet DOD's requirements to maintain air superiority and
to attack enemy forces on the ground.
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