Some 30 Senators and Congressmen of both parties sent letters to Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld to urge the Pentagon buy more new C-130J transports. Rebecca Christie of Dow Jones Newswires reports that Georgia Republican lawmakers Sen. Saxby Chambliss and Rep. Phil Gingrey are leading the drive. (Hint: Lockheed Martin produces the aircraft at its Marietta, Ga., plant.) If the Pentagon stands fast, production would cease in 2008. However, the Air Force may want to revise its plans. It issued a request for information on Nov. 3, looking for replacements for the service’s HC-130 and MC-130 special duty aircraft that could be fielded by 2011.
Amid NATO’s continued push to ramp up air defenses in Eastern Europe, Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall swung by seven allied countries to boost relations last week, including those on Russia’s and Ukraine’s doorstep.