Tuesday, January 24, 2006

Good News, Bad News

The good news: the F/A-22 went operational earlier this month. (The link is to a nine-page photo essay in PDF form) The bad news is the USAF apparently won't be able to buy and field the number of F/A-22s it says it needs.

USAF will be prohibited from acquiring more than about 183 F-22A fighters, the aircraft USAF considers the heart of future aerial combat. That is about half of the 381 Raptors needed for the minimum deployment of one squadron for each of the service’s 10 air expeditionary forces. The decision kills plans for building an FB-22 bomber, too. In effect, DOD reaffirmed last year’s sudden program cut, though it extended production to 2010.

From what I read, it appears the F/A-22 fell victim to competing budget priorities. Current DoD focus is putting more "boots on the ground," that is, increasing the size of the Army and Marines. All those soldiers and Marines will need air support and they most definitely will require the USAF establish air superiority to protect them from air attack. While it's true that al Qaeda doesn't present an air threat, the next adversary just might. Especially if that adversary is spelled C-H-I-N-A. Or even I-R-A-N. The Iranians have an Air Force (they have TWO, in fact) and unlike the Iraqis, I believe the Iranians will fight. They'll lose, but they will fight. And the Iranian air defense environment is formidable, and about to get better. All the more reason for the stealthy F/A-22. Just sayin'.

I can't find the "official" results of the 2005 Quadrennial Defense Review; I don't think it's been published and sent to Congress yet. The Air Force magazine editorial quoted above is certainly pessimistic, but it ends on a "good" note. I use scare quotes because I don't believe it's the best of all possible worlds to have DoD go head to head with Congress over competing priorities. But, if DoD is wrong, then Congress is the last hope to right that wrong.

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