The F-35 Lightning II is red meat for budget-cutters, the USAF’s top civilian leader told reporters Tuesday. “As programs get larger, they look like better targets” for reduction, said Air Force Secretary Michael Wynne. He hopes that doesn’t happen; he said USAF is counting on the F-35 to meet the vision of an all-stealth force. He wants the airplane “as soon as we can get it.” However, if Congress is adamant about delaying the program a year, Wynne believes the Air Force must buy more F-22A Raptors to bridge the gap. He said that fighter inventories just can’t be cut much further.
The defense intelligence community has tried three times in the past decade to build a “common intelligence picture”—a single data stream providing the information that commanders need to make decisions about the battlefield. The first two attempts failed. But officials say things are different today.