Washington Post reporter Josh White uses the C-17 vs. C-5 issue to illustrate how the services often angle to get systems they want when DOD says no. The Air Force could not include money for additional C-17s in the 2008 budget request, but White says USAF has worked Congress “behind the scenes” to get lawmakers to add funding for more C-17s, which some in the House have done. Surviving conference negotiations is another matter because there are other lawmakers who support modernizing the C-5 fleet. (Beware: White dredges up the Air Force’s failed tanker lease program with C-17-maker Boeing, but we see no relationship to the current situation.) The Air Force has acknowledged that it has been taking a look at replacing some C-5s with additional C-17s. USAF says the fledgling C-5 modernization program will cost more money than expected. And, Congress maintains a clamp on the Air Force’s fleet, prohibiting retirement of older C-5s and other aircraft, which costs USAF more in maintenance dollars.
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.