The Los Angeles Times reports that Defense Secretary Robert Gates “privately rebuked” Gen. Bruce Carlson for his widely reported remarks that the Air Force would find a way to purchase the number of F-22 Raptors it needs, rather than stopping at the Administration-approved 183. (See our item below) Peter Spiegel of the Times reports that Gates on Thursday called “Carlson’s superior,” Air Force Secretary Michael Wynne. Carlson is commander of Air Force Materiel Command. Air Force leadership has steadfastly maintained that the service needs 381 Raptors. That hasn’t changed. And, lawmakers last fall criticized the Pentagon for quashing independent studies that confirmed the need for a larger buy of the F-22. Word is that top DOD leaders are being ill-served by an OSD staff so biased against the F-22 that they cannot give objective advice. Why would Deputy Defense Secretary Gordon England believe the F-22 and F-35 are interchangeable
A provision in the fiscal 2025 defense policy bill will require the Defense Department to include the military occupational specialty of service members who die by suicide in its annual report on suicide deaths, though it remains to be seen how much data the department will actually disclose.