USAF to cut another jet?

[Trim Stab]

There is an article in Gay News (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-26326969) today about US defence cuts announced by Chuck Hagel today. There is reference to cutting another jet fleet - is this the A10 whose demise was announced a while back, or are they cutting something else?

[melmothtw]

KC-10 also on chopping block.

[Trim Stab]

Yes, the article has just been updated to announce that the U-2 is also to be cut.

[1.3VStall]

"Gay News" - is that a magazine for people who are happy and full of joie de vivre, or is it a shirtlifters' chronicle?

Either way, why is it publishing articles about military aviation?

[melmothtw]

Have heard the B-2 also, but less sure about that one. 20 aircraft is a prohibitively small fleet, but the strategic implications of canning it would make it too great a cut, I would suggest.

[ORAC]

Press release can be found here: Sources: Hagel FY 2015 Budget Preview (http://www.aviationweek.com/Blogs.aspx?plckBlogId=Blog:27ec4a53-dcc8-42d0-bd3a-01329aef79a7&plckPostId=Blog:27ec4a53-dcc8-42d0-bd3a-01329aef79a7Post:5d51fb65-f14a-457d-bd33-8e8e631fba31)

..........Let me now describe key recommendations for each of the military services.

Air Force

For the Air Force, an emphasis on capability over capacity meant that we protected its key modernization programs, including the new bomber, the Joint Strike Fighter, and the new refueling tanker. We also recommended investing $1 billion in a promising next-generation jet engine technology, which we expect to produce sizeable cost-savings through reduced fuel consumption and lower maintenance needs. This new funding will also help ensure a robust industrial base – itself a national strategic asset.

To fund these investments, the Air Force will reduce the number of tactical air squadrons including the entire A-10 fleet. Retiring the A-10 fleet saves $3.5 billion over five years and accelerates the Air Force’s long-standing modernization plan – which called for replacing the A-10s with the more capable F-35 in the early 2020s.

The “Warthog” is a venerable platform, and this was a tough decision. But the A-10 is a 40-year-old single-purpose airplane originally designed to kill enemy tanks on a Cold War battlefield. It cannot survive or operate effectively where there are more advanced aircraft or air defenses. And as we saw in Iraq and Afghanistan, the advent of precision munitions means that many more types of aircraft can now provide effective close air support, from B-1 bombers to remotely piloted aircraft. And these aircraft can execute more than one mission. Moreover, the A-10’s age is also making it much more difficult and costly to maintain. Significant savings are only possible through eliminating the entire fleet, because of the fixed cost of maintaining the support apparatus associated with the aircraft. Keeping a smaller number of A-10s would only delay the inevitable while forcing worse trade-offs elsewhere.

In addition to the A-10, the Air Force will also retire the 50-year-old U-2 in favor of the unmanned Global Hawk system. This decision was a close call, as DoD had previously recommended retaining the U-2 over the Global Hawk because of cost issues. But over the last several years, DoD has been able to reduce the Global Hawk’s operating costs. With its greater range and endurance, the Global Hawk makes a better high-altitude reconnaissance platform for the future. The Air Force will slow the growth in its arsenal of armed unmanned systems that, while effective against insurgents and terrorists, cannot operate in the face of enemy aircraft and modern air defenses. Instead of increasing to a force of 65 around-the-clock combat air patrols of Predator and Reaper aircraft, the Air Force will grow to 55, still a significant increase. Given the continued drawdown in Afghanistan, this level of coverage will be sufficient to meet our requirements, and we would still be able to surge to an unprecedented 71 combat air patrols under this plan. DoD will continue buying the more capable Reapers until we have an all-Reaper fleet.

If sequestration-level cuts are re-imposed in 2016 and beyond, however, the Air Force would need to make far more significant cuts to force structure and modernization. The Air Force would have to retire 80 more aircraft, including the entire KC-10 tanker fleet and the Global Hawk Block 40 fleet, as well as slow down purchases of the Joint Strike Fighter – resulting in 24 fewer F-35s purchased through Fiscal Year 2019 – and sustain ten fewer Predator and Reaper 24-hour combat air patrols. The Air Force would also have to take deep cuts to flying hours, which would prevent a return to adequate readiness levels.......

Navy and Marine Corps

.............Under sequestration spending levels, the Navy would also halt procurement of the carrier variant of the Joint Strike Fighter for two years.........

[racedo]

A-10 to be cut :ugh::ugh::ugh::ugh::ugh:

[West Coast]

Damn, guess I'm gonna have to pick a new favorite FW aircraft.

[Fox3WheresMyBanana]

Please, please, tell me I won't have to subscribe to Gay News to get the latest aviation scoops...

[chopper2004]

w.r.t U-2, whats the chances they will change their mind again? Plus Global Hawk is good and quite asthetically pleasing to look at, but was not there some issues, which is why they postponed the Dragon Lady's retirement indefinitely?

Now suddenly they have magically reduced the costs of the GH (though haven't the Bundeswehr canned the EuroHawk and what happened to the proposed centralized NATO airborne recon force with GH combo with an Airbus A330 multi mission platform)

For the USN, part of the BAMS, teamed with P-8A, kind of makes some sense...

[NutLoose]

A-10 to be replaced by the F-35..... Please, someone's lost the plot.

[The Sultan]

The A-10 is the war fighters best friend. Killing this fleet for a mere 3.5B is rediculous! Just cut 30 JSF's and keeping them is paid for. At least the A–10's will be there when needed unlike the JSF which will be held back as to valuable to risk for a few grunts.

The Sultan

[thunderbird7]

Gay News? You ****. Maybe you would prefer PRAVDA.

[Archimedes]

Of course, if one actually bothers to hover over the link to see whether TS's sense of humour was at work...

(assuming that your computer doesn't come up with one of those damned viglink things which makes accessing any link on Pprune during working hours fraught with danger from as you have no idea what it goes to, or whether it'll open without setting off the IT police's alarms...)

[Fox3WheresMyBanana]

Having hovered, I'll take Gay News!;)

[Archimedes]

It is a bit less wishy-washy and liberally-minded, I'll grant you...

[melmothtw]

I'm not familiar with the US budget process. As this is just the FY15 budget request, does this mean that the A-10 etc will definitely be axed, or are there further rounds and processes to go through before these proposals are acted upon.

I guess what I am asking is whether these fleets retirements are a done deal.

[Heathrow Harry]

Has to be approved by the snouts in the trough crew in Congress I believe

[ORAC]

Politics. Offer up for savings the platforms you know have large and effective lobbies; and wait for Congress to add additional funding to save them.

[PhilipG]

No congressman will like voting to have their ANG squadrons of A10s or the active service squadrons deactivated together with the bases.
A thing that confuses me is what the planned withdrawal of all A10s, to help fund development of the F35, that among other types it is meant to replace, means for the number of F35s that the USAF will in the end purchase? How can something that is not there be replaced in a base that has been closed?

[racedo]

Its good old fashioned budget fight that means nothing will happen as US Senators will not allow bases close in their states.