Marine Corps: 'Up To The Scrutiny' | Aero-News Network
Aero-News Network
RSS icon RSS feed
podcast icon MP3 podcast
Subscribe Aero-News e-mail Newsletter Subscribe

Airborne Unlimited -- Most Recent Daily Episodes

Episode Date

Airborne-Monday

Airborne-Tuesday

Airborne-Wednesday Airborne-Thursday

Airborne-Friday

Airborne On YouTube

Airborne-Unlimited-07.21.25

Airborne-NextGen-07.15.25

AirborneUnlimited-07.16.25

Airborne-FlightTraining-07.17.25

AirborneUnlimited-07.18.25

Wed, May 20, 2009

Marine Corps: 'Up To The Scrutiny'

Marine Corps Ready, Commandant Says

The Marine Corps is lean and built for a fight, including the scrutiny of the upcoming Quadrennial Defense Review, its commandant said during a military strategy forum last week.
 
"We think that... as a Marine Corps, we're going to be scrutinized during the QDR but in the end, we think we'll be OK," Marine Gen. James T. Conway said at the Center for Strategic and International Studies Military Strategy Forum. The QDR is a study the Defense Department conducts every four years to analyze strategic objectives and potential military threats.

"The Marine Corps pulls down about 6 percent of the department's budget," Conway said. "For that 6 percent, you get about 15, 16 percent of the maneuver battalions; you get 15 percent of the attack aircraft [and] you get 19 percent of the attack helicopters. The average Marine costs the country about $20,000 less than the next closest service man in other services."

The Corps also defines the kind of service Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates is seeking: a balanced force oriented toward the hybrid, but able to counter surprises that sometimes develop around the globe, Conway said.

"One hundred percent of our Marine Corps procurement can be used in both the hybrid kind of environment or in major combat," he said. "It's a record we're proud of and we think that's certainly going to continue on downrange."

The QDR most likely will bring up three issues involving the Marine Corps, the commandant said. The first is the lay down of forces as it relates to the Corps' pending move to Guam.

The second is the shortfall in the Corps' attack aircraft procurement. It hasn't purchased such a craft in 11 years, but with good reason, he said.

"We chose not to buy the F-18 E and F when the Navy did, so that we could await the arrival of a fifth-generation fighter called the Joint Strike Fighter, the F-35B," Conway said. "Interestingly, we are the first of all the services to get initial operation capacity out of that aircraft."

That capacity won't be a reality until 2012. Until then, the Marine Corps has taken steps to make sure its fleet of F-18 A through D fighter jets are viable resources, including extending the jets to 10,000 hours of flight time, Conway said. [ANN Salutes Samantha L. Quigley, American Forces Press Service]

FMI: www.marines.mil

Advertisement

More News

Airborne 07.18.25: Will MOSAIC Be Announced Tuesday???, 12 Hot News Items

Also: DeltaHawk, Piper, Hartzell, High Flying Models & Bob Hoover Legacy, SUN n FUN26 and Affordable Flying Expo 2025 -- and MUCH More. In an exclusive interview earlier this m>[...]

Airborne-Flight Training 07.10.25: ATC School, Air Race Classic, Samson School

Also: Sully v Bedford, Embraer Scholarships, NORAD Intercepts 11, GAMA Thankful Middle Georgia State University will be joining the Federal Aviation Administration’s fight ag>[...]

Airborne 07.18.25: Will MOSAIC Be Announced Tuesday???, 12 Hot News Items

Also: DeltaHawk, Piper, Hartzell, High Flying Models & Bob Hoover Legacy, SUN n FUN26 and Affordable Flying Expo 2025 -- and MUCH More. In an exclusive interview earlier this m>[...]

ANN's Daily Aero-Linx (07.16.25)

Aero Linx: Minnesota Seaplane Pilots Association (MSPA) We are the Minnesota Seaplane Pilots Association (MSPA), a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting and empowering sea>[...]

ANN's Daily Aero-Term (07.16.25): Preferred IFR Routes

Preferred IFR Routes Routes established between busier airports to increase system efficiency and capacity. They normally extend through one or more ARTCC areas and are designed to>[...]

blog comments powered by Disqus



Advertisement

Advertisement

Podcasts

Advertisement

© 2007 - 2025 Web Development & Design by Pauli Systems, LC