Watchdog: Air Force Plan to Divest Old F-22s Has Too Many Holes

Watchdog: Air Force Plan to Divest Old F-22s Has Too Many Holes

June 20, 2024 | By David Roza

A government watchdog said the Air Force’s proposal to divest 32 of its oldest F-22 fighter jets leaves too many questions unanswered for Congress to make a well-informed decision. 

Specifically, the service needs to provide better information about what toll the divestments would take on the F-22 program’s ability to train pilots, test new capabilities, and meet mission requirements, the Government Accountability Office wrote in a June 18 report. The service also needs more analysis on the costs of maintaining the current fleet and of possibly upgrading the 32 jets in question.

“We respect the Air Force’s need to make difficult budget decisions in the face of limited resources and having to provide the necessary tools to the warfighter,” GAO officials wrote. “This does not, however, alleviate it of the responsibility to document the process and data it uses to make these decisions.”

The Air Force currently has 185 F-22s—150 in the Block 30/35 configuration, 33 in the Block 20 configuration. Block 30/35 includes upgraded radar, weapons, and communication, enhanced GPS systems, and improved cockpit and heads-up displays. The Block 30/35 jets also have better air-to-ground attack capability and can fire modern AIM-9X and AIM-120D missiles.

Lagging farther behind are the Block 20 jets, which are used primarily for training new pilots. Air Combat Command officials said new F-22 pilots spend 90 percent of their initial flight training on Block 20s, but the Air Force thinks the Block 20s are not worth the cost of maintenance as the service looks to modernize.

The F-22 Raptor Demonstration Team performs in Alaska, July 12, 2020. (Air Force photo by 1st Lt. Sam Eckholm)

Wear and Tear

One modernization effort is the Next-Generation Air Dominance program, a family of systems that are supposed to replace the F-22 as America’s ace-in-the-hole for air-to-air combat. The Air Force thinks it would save about $1.8 billion for programs like NGAD between fiscal years 2024 and 2028 by divesting the Block 20 F-22s, but GAO says the service has not done its homework checking those calculations.

Small as it is, the F-22 fleet did not meet its mission capability or aircraft availability goals in any fiscal year from 2011 to 2021. In fact, most F-22 combat squadrons have 24 Block 30/35 jets to make sure there are 12 mission capable aircraft at any time. If the Air Force transferred 32 Block 30/35 jets to training squadrons, it would leave just 18 total aircraft at each combat unit, the report noted.

“This would increase the wear and tear on these aircraft since, according to Air Combat Command officials, new pilots often have hard landings and make other mistakes that are tough on aircraft,” the watchdog agency explained.

It is also unclear how long the F-22 fleet would have to sustain that tempo, since there is no publicly available date for when NGAD could take the Raptor’s place. Indeed, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David W. Allvin said last week that NGAD faces an uncertain future amid the service’s competing modernization priorities.

Even if the Air Force published a date tomorrow, there could still be years of delays similar to the ones that have befallen the F-35 fighter and T-7A trainer, GAO noted. Divesting the Block 20s could also cramp F-22 developmental and operational testing programs, which are already under-resourced, the report added. The watchdog argued that Congress could make a more-informed decision if the Air Force’s calculations were sound, but those are not publicly available.

“Materials supporting the Air Force’s divestment decision stated that these issues, along with their associated risks, required further analysis,” GAO noted. “We were not provided documentation that these issues were analyzed.”

Some of that may be due to current Air Force budget guidance, which “does not require the Air Force to provide key information to Congress regarding divestment decisions,” the GAO found. 

Airman 1st Class Nicholas Hull, 94th Aircraft Maintenance Unit crew chief, marshalls in a U.S. Air Force F-22 Raptor aircraft at Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Virginia, May 13, 2020. (U.S. Air Force photo by Nicholas J. De La Pena)

Upgrades?

The Air Force argues that the Block 20s are too outdated to fight a war against China, but GAO noted that the service did not adequately explore the idea of upgrading the jets to the Block 30/35 configuration. Prime contractor Lockheed Martin estimated it would cost at least $3.3 billion and at least 15 years, largely due to the time and cost of restarting parts production lines. The price tag would work out to at least $100 million per tail, more than the cost of a brand-new F-35.

Lockheed Martin told GAO the upgrade cost estimates were not submitted in response to a formal request for proposal by the Air Force and should be considered notional. Neither the Air Force or contractor looked into upgrading the Block 20s with other parts from active production lines or achieving some other configuration besides Block 20 and Block 30/35. 

“Because the Air Force did not fully assess its options to upgrade, the Air Force and congressional decision makers have limited insight about the potential consequences of Block 20 upgrades and are not well-positioned to make informed determinations about the future of these aircraft,” the watchdog wrote.

After the Air Force proposed divesting Block 20 F-22s in its fiscal year 2023 budget proposal, Congress included language in that year’s defense bill prohibiting the service from divesting the jets until fiscal year 2028 so that more information could be gathered, including GAO’s report. 

Earlier this year, both the House and Senate Armed Services Committees blocked the Air Force’s proposal to retire 32 F-22s in their markups of the fiscal 2025 National Defense Authorization bill.

The Senate also directed the Air Force to provide “an annual report on the Air Force tactical fighter force structure” and work with the Navy to develop a plan for air superiority in the 2030s and ‘40s.

The pause could give the Air Force more time to explore the costs of upgrading or divesting its Block 20 F-22s. The GAO said the service did not agree with its recommendations to fully document the options for divesting and upgrading, but it encouraged Congress to consider requiring the Air Force provide such data before making divestment decisions. 

The Navy already has a similar program requiring the Navy Secretary to submit a detailed rationale and exploration of options to Congress in order to decommission or inactivate a battle force ship before the end of its expected service life, GAO pointed out. 

“Without guidance, the Air Force may continue to make budget proposals to Congress that include divesting assets without documenting the impact of these decisions on its entire fleet,” the watchdog added.

New Report: USSF’s Missile Warning Satellites in All Orbits Face Challenges

New Report: USSF’s Missile Warning Satellites in All Orbits Face Challenges

June 20, 2024 | By Greg Hadley

The Space Force is working on dozens of new missile warning and tracking satellites that will go across every orbit in space—geosynchronous, polar, medium-Earth, and low-Earth. But a new report from a government watchdog noted issues in those programs which could lead to delays and other challenges.

As part of its annual weapons assessment report released this month, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) looked at five different missile warning/missile tracking programs within the Space Force, all of which are expected to start delivery in the next few years and comprise a massive portion of the service’s budget plans: $24.77 billion in the next five years. 

Next-Gen OPIR 

The longest in development, the Next-Generation Overhead Persistent (OPIR) Infrared program is meant to succeed the Space Based Infrared System (SBIRS) program and actually consists of three segments: 

  • Next-Gen OPIR GEO: Two satellites that will go into geosynchronous orbit. 
  • Next-Gen OPIR Polar: Two satellites that will go into polar orbit. 
  • FORGE: The ground segment that is meant to provide command and control and data processing for the satellites.

Originally, the Space Force planned to buy three GEO satellites, but the service’s other efforts in low- and medium-Earth orbit led it to cut one in its 2024 budget. Congress approved that cut, though some lawmakers expressed concerns about it and requested more information on the issue. 

Even with the cut, the first GEO satellite appears likely to miss its 2025 launch date, the GAO found. 

“The program continues to face schedule challenges, driven largely by the mission payload,” the agency’s report states. “According to the program office, flight hardware production and integration challenges already delayed payload delivery by roughly 11 months until July 2024. As a result, payload and space vehicle integration delays will likely result in launch delays and program cost increases. Our work in this area indicates that a launch delay of at least a year is likely for the first GEO satellite.” 

The report, which is based on data up until January 2024, did note that program officials said they were “resolute” in trying to solve scheduling problems and meet their original launch date. But GAO is not the only one sounding the alarm about that not happening. Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Space Acqusition and Integration Frank Calvelli told lawmakers in written testimony this spring that Next-Gen OPIR GEO was a program he was “watching closely.” 

“The payload is in test, but over a year late,” he wrote. “We cannot afford delays, and I am engaging with this program frequently to mitigate further slips.” 

That mission payload will be modified to go on the Next-Gen OPIR Polar satellites, which have more time before their first launch in 2028. However, the GAO report noted that program officials are “tracking risks associated with the integration of the main mission payload onto the space vehicle.” Should the satellite have to be modified, it could cause integration issues leading to delays or extra costs. 

An artist illustration depicts a Next-Generation Overhead Persistent Infrared (Next-Gen OPIR) system in GEO orbit. Next-Gen OPIR is intended to replace the Space Based Infrared System (SBIRS), beginning with its first launch in 2025. Lockheed Martin illustration

Yet perhaps the bigger risk to the Polar satellites is FORGE, which officials say has made incremental progress but still has a ways to go. 

“Numerous development, integration, and testing steps are needed before the FORGE command and control functions will achieve readiness for system-level testing,” the GAO report states. “If FORGE command and control functions are still immature by the end of fiscal year 2026, the first polar satellite launch is likely to be delayed and program costs are likely to increase.” 

The Space Force has selected four companies to work on a FORGE C2 prototype and plans to pick one to move forward later this year, the GAO noted, but the prototype would have to be completed by late 2028 to support the first Polar satellite launch. 

In the interim, the service is working on what it calls Next-Gen Interim Operations (NIO) as a placeholder for FORGE. Considering the delays with FORGE’s C2 development, the interim “will be the only system available to command and control the space vehicles for several years,” the report notes. 

Tracking Layer

The first eight demonstration satellites of the Space Development Agency’s (SDA’s) Tracking Layer are in low-Earth orbit after launches last year, and the agency’s focus has now turned to the 28 satellites that will make “Tranche 1” of that layer. 

Expected costs on the Tranche 1 Tracking Layer have dipped 6 percent compared to last year, the GAO report noted, which did not note any schedule risks. SDA officials have said speed is their top priority, above cost and performance. 

Yet performance in Tranche 1 may suffer, the GAO report warns. Specifically, since SDA developed an optical communications terminal (OCT) standard to encourage competition and interoperability. 

‘However, it has a challenge of ensuring interoperability among multiple vendors because, per testing officials, the SDA OCT standard is different from commercial OCT standards, and vendors can have different interpretations of it,” the report states. 

As a result, SDA officials said they may need to process the Tracking satellites’ data on the ground, then send it back up to the agency’s Transport Layer satellites for distribution. Such an arrangement could lead to delays in missile warning. 

MEO 

In between geosynchronous and low-Earth orbit, Space Systems Command has been working on a constellation of medium-Earth orbit satellites, slated to start launching in late 2026, early 2027. 

The GAO report noted two critical technologies for these satellites that will not be mature until September 2026, according to program officials: optical sensors that will allow the satellites to pass data to each other directly, and “large format focal plane arrays, which are sensors that can capture images with high resolution and sensitivity.” 

Officials also noted problems with shared access to the modeling and engineering tool being used to design the satellites and their payloads. Work on the report was completed before the Space Force announced it was canceling its contract with RTX to produce three of the nine satellites meant to go in the first batch. 

Editor’s Note: This story was updated June 21 to correct the current estimate for the number of satellites in the Tranche 1 Tracking Layer.

Tactical Vehicle Rollover on WWII-Era Road Leaves 2 Airmen Disabled

Tactical Vehicle Rollover on WWII-Era Road Leaves 2 Airmen Disabled

June 20, 2024 | By Greg Hadley

One Airman was left permanently paralyzed below the waist and another suffered internal bleeding and had her leg amputated after an all-terrain, search-and-rescue tactical vehicle (SRTV) they were riding in rolled over on the island of Tinian last year. A subsequent investigation determined neither Airman was wearing a seatbelt or protective equipment, and the driver was speeding down a rough, World War II-era road. 

The mishap occurred last February during the Cope North exercise. That day, pararescuemen were being dropped over the water for an over the beach insertion to recover an isolated person. A Tactical Air Control Party (TACP) officer and a combat camera noncommissioned officer were supposed to meet the PJs on the beach—the TACP to provide communications support, the combat camera to capture images for public affairs. 

While another service members and an exercise participant drove a rental vehicle to the beach, the TACP officer volunteered to fuel and drive a SRTV-SXV Tactical Vehicle, a lightweight, open-air vehicle used by Guardian Angel rescue teams. 

The combat camera NCO had no experience on the vehicle and did not even know how to buckle the seatbelt, investigators wrote in a report. When she asked the TACP for help, he said they would not need seatbelts because the ride would only take five minutes. He also did not inform her that “ankle covering, boots, pants, gloves, eye protection, helmet, and seatbelts” are all required while operating the vehicle. 

With neither Airman buckled in, they drove down an unpaved road with vegetation growing close on both sides. Investigators noted that most roads on Tinian were constructed in 1944 when the island was a bomber base for the U.S. during World War II, and they have not been improved since. 

The combat camera Airman later told investigators she felt the TACP officer was driving too fast and told him to slow down, as gravel and vegetation hit her. The officer told investigators he did not remember hearing any warnings or requests to slow down. Instead, he said an issue with the steering caused the vehicle to drift into the brush on the passenger side, and he overcorrected, sending the vehicle into the brush on the other side. 

The vehicle then rolled over, ejecting both Airmen. A nearby civilian attempted to render aid, then went and informed other service members about the mishap. First responders were able to administer tactical life-saving care, and the combat camera Airman was quickly flown on a C-130 to Guam, where she was transferred to a medical facility. The TACP officer was moved to Guam later that day. 

The combat camera NCO suffered a pelvic fracture and internal abdominal injuries, resulting in “an above-knee amputation of the right leg and significant scarring and motor/sensory limitations on the left leg,” investigators wrote. The TACP officer “sustained serious injuries, resulting in permanent paralysis below the waist.” 

Based on the evidence, investigators estimated that the tactical vehicle was going between 40 and 50 miles per hour at the time of the accident. There was no posted speed limit, but a local police officer later said that given the road’s condition and the overgrown vegetation, he would have recommended a speed limit of 15 miles per hour. Manufacturer BC Customs recommends a maximum speed of 45 miles per hour on paved surfaces. 

Images of the crash site from the Air Force Accident Investigation Board report

Investigators wrote that during the acquisition process for the SRTV-SXV, officials became aware that the vehicle had a “tendency” to roll over due to its narrow wheelbase and high center of gravity. The manufacturer offered to install spacers to increase its wheelbase and lower the center of gravity, and while the Air Force eventually decided proper training would be enough to mitigate the risk without degrading performance, officials determined the vehicle in the mishap had the spacers installed. 

However, proper training could have been a factor in the mishap. The TACP officer told investigators he had received training on multiple types of tactical vehicles, as well as familiarization training from a pararescueman on the SRTV-SXV just days before the mishap. However, investigators found no documentation of that training, and the PJ told them he did not train the officer on the SRTV-SXV. Without proper documentation of training, the TACP was not qualified to drive the vehicle. 

Vehicle rollovers are one of the leading kinds of mishaps across the armed services. In 2021, the Government Accountability Office released a study of such incidents from 2010 to 2019 among the Army and Marine Corps and counted 3,753 noncombat accidents resulting in 123 service member deaths.

More recently, two Soldiers were killed and 12 more injured in Alaska when a tactical vehicle rolled over last October.

The Air Force has had issues as well. In 2020, two Airman died in the span of three days at Ali Al Salem Air Base in Kuwait after two separate rollover incidents. Air Education and Training Command’s safety directorate published a release June 19 noting the risk of rollover mishaps and a growing trend of fewer U.S. teens gaining driving experience.

Historic USAF Court-Martial Hits Snag as Too Many Generals Struck from Jury Duty

Historic USAF Court-Martial Hits Snag as Too Many Generals Struck from Jury Duty

June 20, 2024 | By David Roza

SAN ANTONIO—The trial of the second Air Force general in history to face court-martial hit a snag June 19 as the court ran out of candidates for the eight-seat jury—called a panel in the military—whose members must either be higher-ranked than the defendant or pinned on the same rank before him.

Of the 16 generals considered so far, nine have been dismissed and seven cleared to serve on the panel for Maj. Gen. Phillip Stewart, who on March 21 pleaded not guilty to charges including sexual assault, conduct unbecoming an officer, and controlling an aircraft within 12 hours of consuming alcohol. 

The potential jurors included two four-star generals, 12 three-stars, and two two-stars. Two lead Air Force major commands, four are MAJCOM deputy commanders, one is a Numbered Air Force commander, several are members of the Air Staff, and others are the heads of important centers across the country.

It is a mix never seen before in an Air Force court-martial. The only other Air Force general to have been court-martialed, Maj. Gen. William Cooley, was convicted of abusive sexual contact in 2022 by military judge alone.

Stewart was relieved as the head of the 19th Air Force, which oversees all Air Force pilot training, by Lt. Gen. Brian Robinson, the head of Air Education and Training Command (AETC), on May 9, 2023. If convicted on all charges, Stewart could face up to 60 years in prison, according to his defense counsel.

The two-star’s trial began with administrative proceedings at Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston, Texas, on June 17, followed by two days of “voir dire,” where the trial counsel and defense evaluate potential panel members for bias that could cloud their judgment.

Of the 16 considered for panel service, three generals were dismissed over the weekend, while 13 traveled to Texas to take part in a group voir dire session followed by individual voir dire.

“This is my first time speaking with 13 general officers,” trial counsel Lt. Col. Peter Havern said during group voir dire.

Stewart requested a trial by a panel of his peers back in March. But the field of candidates is relatively small: there are just 39 lieutenant generals and 11 generals in Active-Duty service, plus a small group from among 68 major generals who pinned on before Stewart.

The defense team also has a wide margin to challenge the jurors’ impartiality. Besides being the right rank, panel members must also be considered free of actual bias and implied bias. Actual bias might take the form of a member explicitly stating a biased view or if they have a close connection with the defendant. 

But the standard for implied bias is more vague. A defense team could make a case for implied bias if a panel member has served as a convening authority (the ranking officer overseeing a court-martial) for a trial involving sexual assault, or even if they received extra training for how to oversee such cases.

“The implied bias standard is basically would a neutral member of the public who knows all the facts of the case have concerns about that person sitting as a court member?” retired Col. Don Christensen, a former chief prosecutor of the Air Force who is not involved in the case, told Air & Space Forces Magazine. “What’s that mean? Who knows … it’s pretty wild wild west when it comes to implied bias.”

A long-standing principle called the “liberal grant mandate” means military judges are mandated to err on the side of granting a challenge rather than deny it and risk the perception of bias. 

Throughout the voir dire process, attorneys scrutinized the generals’ past service as convening authorities; their past interactions with Stewart; their professional and personal relationships with each other; and their beliefs and opinions on alcohol, adultery, and consent. 

“We grew up in the Air Force together,” one of the court members said about his fellow generals, none of whom said they had a close relationship with Stewart, though nearly all had occasional professional interactions with him in the past.

“If I’ve drank bourbon twice with you, it’s a close professional relationship,” said another general, who said he had that relationship with several fellow panel members but not with Stewart.

At times the voir dire process became deeply personal, with general officers sharing stories of family members, loved ones, and staff members who had experienced sexual assault. That kind of experience was often cited by Stewart’s defense team as a basis for implied bias. 

Another factor the defense team frequently cited as grounds for bias was whether the court member had a close working relationship with a widely known major general who the trial counsel plans to call as a witness. Still another was whether or not the court member expected Stewart to testify, with the defense citing the possibility that if Stewart does not testify it would color panel members’ judgement.

Context

Throughout voir dire, attorneys on both sides noted multiple times the importance of public perception that the trial is conducted fairly and impartially. In the past, general officers such as Maj. Gen. Thomas Fiscus and Brig Gen. Richard Hassan were demoted or allowed to retire rather than face court-martial after investigations found they had made inappropriate sexual advances on 13 women, or sexually harassed their subordinates, respectively.

Not until Cooley’s trial in April 2022 did any Air Force general officer endure a court-martial, but Stewart’s defense team fears the pendulum has swung too far.

“It’s looking more and more like a kangaroo court,” defense team member Jeffrey Addicott told Air & Space Forces Magazine in January, about three months after the presiding officer at Stewart’s preliminary hearing recommended the case not proceed to court-martial. 

Christensen described the presiding officer, Col. Brian Thompson, as a highly-experienced former prosecutor, but Lt. Gen. Brian Robinson, head of Air Education and Training Command, decided to refer all charges to court-martial anyway. In January, Stewart filed a request to retire in lieu of court-martial, but the request was denied.

In the past, “you would often see, particularly general officers, get slapped on the wrist and then retire quietly,” Christensen at the time. “This one can’t be retired quietly because there is a lot of media interest in it.”

Christensen said the close scrutiny of court members could be part of the defense team’s strategy.

“I think they’re trying to say ‘we don’t think you can seat eight members,’ and they can make it so painful for the government that they let him retire,” he said. “I could be wrong but the large part of me thinks the strategy is: ‘the Air Force never had to seat a panel of general officers, let’s see if you can do it.’”

Next Steps

With just seven panel members, it will be at least a few more days before the court-martial can select an eighth member and then proceed to opening arguments. After court went into recess on June 19, the trial counsel sent Robinson, the convening authority, a list of new members to consider for jury duty. 

Assuming Robinson can detail those members early in the morning of June 20 and notify them immediately, those members have until 5 p.m. Central Time on June 20 to fill out a pre-voir dire questionnaire, then report to the Fort Sam Houston courtroom by 8:30 in the morning on June 22. The full panel is expected to reconvene at 8:30 in the morning on June 24.

It was not clear how many more generals were included in this second set, but even if the court reaches eight panel members, the defense can still opt to go judge alone.

Though they had to travel far from demanding and important jobs, only one of the first 13 generals who participated in voir dire early this week expressed any frustration at being detailed as a court member, and just two expressed any doubt that they could be free and impartial, despite numerous opportunities to get out of jury duty by expressing otherwise.

Some of that apparent willingness to serve may be out of a wish to help shape the image of the Air Force in a high-visibility trial, Christensen said, but some of it may also be borne out of their own past experience as convening authorities.

“They have all selected panels to do exactly what they’re doing and they all heard people whining ‘I can’t do this, let me off, general’,” he said. “And they’ve all had to say, ‘no, this is your duty.’ So I would hope that they would want to stay.”

Stewart’s charges include six specifications:

  • Two specifications of violating Article 92 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice, failing to obey a lawful order or regulation, first for allegedly failing “to refrain from pursuing an unprofessional relationship” and second for allegedly controlling an aircraft within 12 hours after consuming alcohol. The first specification allegedly dates to March 6 and May 9, while the second allegedly dates to on or about April 14 at or near Altus Air Force Base, Okla.
  • Two specifications of violating Article 120 of the UCMJ, which covers rape and sexual assault, for alleged nonconsensual sexual contact, dated on or about April 13 and 14 at Altus.
  • One specification of violating Article 133 of the UCMJ, conduct unbecoming an officer, at or near Denver, Colo., on or about March 6 and March 8, where it alleges that Stewart, “while on official travel, wrongfully invite [redacted] to spend the night alone with him in his private hotel room[.]”
  • And one specification of violating UCMJ Article 134, which refers to “all disorders and neglects to the prejudice of good order and discipline in the armed forces, of a nature to bring discredit upon the armed forces,” for allegedly engaging “in extramarital conduct” on or about April 13 and 14 at or near Altus.
New Report: B-52J Initial Operational Capability Will Slip Three Years to 2033

New Report: B-52J Initial Operational Capability Will Slip Three Years to 2033

June 18, 2024 | By John A. Tirpak

Initial operational capability for the B-52J—the new designation for the bomber after extensive re-engining and upgrade programs—won’t be achieved until 2033. The three-year delay is due to issues both with its new engines and new radar, the Government Accountability Office said in a new report.

In its annual assessment of in-development weapons programs, released June 17, the GAO said funding shortfalls hampered timely completion of design for the B-52 Commercial Engine Replacement Program. As a result, the program won’t have a critical design review—and a contract award—until August 2025. That in turn pushed IOC to 2033, three years past the original plan and two years after a first delay was announced in 2022.  

The delays result from the Air Force “underestimating the level of funding” needed to complete detailed design of the re-engining, which pairs Rolls Royce F130-200 engines with new nacelles, pylons, and controls. Boeing is the integrator of the project.

“Specifically, as the B-52 prototyping effort was extended from preliminary design to critical design, program officials received a proposal for the detailed design work,” the report states. “Program officials stated that the proposal cost exceeded the program’s available funding, and that they asked Boeing to slow its level of work to align with available funding. They also noted that an associated materials contract could not be awarded, causing additional delays.”

Other delays stemmed from a “best practices” effort to solicit input from pilots and maintainers while the design was progressing, GAO officials said.

“Program officials noted that this feedback led to design changes, such as a redesign of service panel hinges to improve maintainer access,” the report states. Though applauding this approach, the watchdog said “the program does not plan to conduct integrated, systems-level testing in an operational environment prior to production, which could provide additional knowledge into how key systems will perform and reduce production risk.”

Program managers told the GAO that the accelerated component and lab testing “will allow them to mitigate technical risks prior to the first production decision.” The contractors delivered a virtual systems prototype in the fall of 2023.

Last summer, program officials with the Air Force, Boeing, and Rolls Royce reported the program as being on-track. The GAO noted, however, that official new program costs had not been set by January, the close date for the data included in its report. This was because the program was in the process of transitioning from an accelerated, mid-tier acquisition to a major defense program.

The CERP effort plans to flight-test a production-representative prototype “about 6 months after the first low-rate initial production decision,” the report noted. “Officials stated that this approach presents cost risk, but they are willing to trade off cost risk in order to maintain schedule.”

Meanwhile, costs on the B-52 Radar Modernization Program jumped 12.6 percent last fall versus the 2021 estimate, and the program “declared a cost breach,” the report stated.

The RMP’s cost was estimated at $2.34 billion in 2021—inclusive of development and procurement—but by the end of fiscal 2023 had climbed to $2.58 billion.  

The cost increase was attributed to buying more test hardware, staffing three integration laboratories, installing test gear, and “an additional year of contractor support,” but the principal technical issues involved “delays with the display and sensor processor.” A fiber optic line that was to allow the processors to talk to each other didn’t work, for example.

The B-52’s new radar is an adaptation and amalgam of those used on the Boeing F-15 and F/A-18. It uses the sensor from the F/A-18’s AN/APG-79V4, but pairs it with the processor in the APG-82 used on the F-15. Together, the two systems must fit within the space vacated by removing the B-52’s APG-166 analog radar system, which suffers from poor reliability, obsolescence, and parts scarcity. The new radar is expected to deliver vastly improved performance, both in operations and maintainability, and in both the conventional and nuclear roles. The new system—still lacking a name—will provide targeting information as well as weather and navigation aids.   

Low-rate initial production of the RMP has slipped from late 2024 to spring 2025, with various elements of the project slipping from three to six months, the GAO report stated. This made the watchdog agency nervous because testing won’t be completed before low-rate initial production starts, and this typically leads to costly reworks if something is found not to work properly.

The RMP is supposed to achieve initial operating capability in 2027, well before the CERP.  Program managers considered a two-stage designation for the combined upgrade: B-52I when the radars were installed, then B-52J once the new engines were added. The interim designation was dropped because the CERP was supposed to come close on the heels of the CERP. While that distinction may not seem very significant, a former program manager said “pilots need to know which kind of jet they’re stepping to; what to expect, and what [manual] to use.”

The overall B-52 upgrade also includes navigation and communication upgrades and structural improvements in some key areas. It is expected to extend the B-52 fleet’s life to the 2050s.

The Senate Armed Services Committee last week asked the Air Force to provide cost information for making the full fleet of 76 B-52s capable of nuclear operations. A portion of the fleet, under the New START treaty, lacks the hardening and wiring for that mission.

Elsewhere in the GAO’s report, it said the AGM-181 Long-Range Stand-Off missile—the nuclear weapon intended to succeed the AGM-86B Air-Launched Cruise Missile, carried only by the B-52—is still expected to achieve initial operational capability in 2030.

Air Force, Lockheed Test New Reentry Vehicle for Sentinel ICBM

Air Force, Lockheed Test New Reentry Vehicle for Sentinel ICBM

June 18, 2024 | By Greg Hadley

The Air Force and Lockheed Martin announced their first test June 18 of a new reentry vehicle planned to ride atop the Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missile. 

An unarmed Mk21A reentry vehicle was launched late June 17 at Vandenberg Space Force Base, Calif. Mounted on a Minotaur I rocket, it flew over the Pacific Ocean, according to a Lockheed Martin press release. The Mk21A is an update to the Mk21 that is currently mounted to the Minuteman III ICBM. 

Neither the Air Force nor Lockheed disclosed any other details about the test, though Lockheed did note that “data collected during the event will further inform Mk21A design and future flight test activities.” 

The Air Force Nuclear Weapons Center awarded Lockheed a $996 million contract for the Mk21A in October 2023. The reentry vehicles will ultimately be fitted with nuclear warheads and integrated into the Sentinel ICBM. In operation, the reentry vehicle is released near the top of the missile’s arc and descends back through the atmosphere towards the target. 

Sentinel has run into trouble recently, with cost and schedule overruns triggering a program review because the impact exceeded limits known as a Nunn-McCurdy breach.

The Nunn-McCurdy Act requires the Department of Defense to report to Congress each time a Major Defense Acquisition Program exceed certain cost thresholds. The Air Force declaired a critical breach for Sentinel in April, indicating cost increases greater than 25 percent over baseline estimates.

Mk21A is technically a separate program. Air Force budget documents show that the service plans to buy 426 reentry vehicles, with deliveries planned to begin in fiscal 2028 and continue through 2039. 

The Air Force is also funding research and development on a “next-generation reentry vehicle.” 

The Minotaur I rocket that launched the Mk21A on June 17 is part of a family of systems based on the Peacekeeper and Minuteman rocket motors, Space Launch Delta 30 noted in a release. The Mk21A is an update to the Mk21 that is currently mounted to the Minuteman III ICBM. 

Other elements of the Sentinel ICBM have been tested in the past few months. In February, manufacturer Northrop Grumman announced it had conducted a shroud fly-off test and a missile stack test. And in January, the company said it successfully tested the second stage solid-rocket motor of the missile. 

The Air Force wants to procure more than 600 Sentinel missiles to replace its aging Minuteman IIIs, which have been operational for decades and are well past their projected service life. The goal is to field the new ICBMs by 2030.

PHOTOS: B-2 Bombers Land on Guam for First Time in 5 Years

PHOTOS: B-2 Bombers Land on Guam for First Time in 5 Years

June 18, 2024 | By Greg Hadley

Multiple B-2 bombers flew to the Pacific last week to participate in a large-scale joint exercise around Guam, Palau, and the Northern Mariana Islands. During the deployment, the stealthy bombers landed on Guam for the first time in years.

Pacific Air Forces released images of the B-2s flying alongside Marine Corps F-35Bs and landing at Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, on June 13. While there, they participated in Exercise Valiant Shield, which concluded June 18. 

The Air Force has not announced a B-2 landing on Guam since 2019 during a refueling stop for a Bomber Task Force mission. The bomber made several appearances over Europe in 2023, and crews deployed to Australia in 2022 as part of a Bomber Task Force.

Valiant Shield is a biennial exercise, with the latest edition including all six services, as well as international partners for the first time. As part of the exercise, forces conducted a sinking exercise on the decommissioned hulk of an amphibious transport dock, launched high-altitude balloons from Andersen, conducted nighttime flying operations, and more, to build “real-world proficiency in sustaining joint forces by detecting, locating, tracking, and engaging units at sea, in the air, in space, on land, and in cyberspace in response to a range of mission areas,” according to a Navy release.

The Air Force, in particular, contributed a host of forces to the exercise. In addition to the B-2s from Whiteman Air Force Base, Mo., the exercise included: 

  • F-22s from Joint Base Langley–Eustis, Va.; and Elmendorf Air Force Base, Alaska 
  • F-16s from Misawa Air Base, Japan 
  • C-17s from Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, N.J. 
  • C-130Js from Dyess Air Force Base, Texas 
  • B-1s from Ellsworth Air Force Base, S.D.

      The C-130Js in particular participated in a maximum endurance operation to get to the exercise—echoing the epic 26-hour flight another C-130J crew took from Dyess to Guam in April, two C-130Js equipped with conformal fuel tanks flew 22 hours from Texas to the Pacific, with a quick stop in California, while two others made an additional stop. 

      The B-1s and F-22s took part in the formation flight over U.S. Navy and Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force ships to kick off the exercise on June 7. 

      Neither Pacific Air Forces nor Whiteman Air Force Base have disclosed what missions or training the B-2s participated in during the exercise. 

      Air Force’s New Goal: 24 Deployable Combat Wings

      Air Force’s New Goal: 24 Deployable Combat Wings

      June 18, 2024 | By Greg Hadley

      The Air Force plans to field 24 Deployable Combat Wings to meet its rotational demands and provide a cushion for times of crisis, Lt. Gen. Adrian L. Spain, deputy chief of staff for operations, said June 18. 

      Combat Wings replace squadrons as the “units of action” that the Air Force presents to combatant commanders when forces are needed. Deployable Combat Wings will include command, sustainment, and mission layers, and can either pick up and deploy as an entire unit, or add or exchange mission elements depending on a combatant command’s needs at the time.

      Getting to 24 DCWs won’t happen overnight. Chief of Staff Gen. David W. Allvin said June 14 that his staff is still developing the roadmap that will enable combat wings to be the operable deployable elements by late 2026.

      “I think the number that we’re shooting for right now is 24,” Spain said. “We think 16 Active-Duty and eight from the Reserve components.”  

      How many the Air Force can field may not equate to need, however.

      “The number that we can generate and the number that we need is absolutely what we’re talking about,” Spain said. “How many do we think we can actually generate with current resources? And how many do we need, not only to meet the current rotational requirements that we know we’re going to have or we’re likely to continue to have… but to give us some margin for combat credible and capable units of action beyond just the rotational part?” 

      Two dozen Deployable Combat Wings would allow the Air Force to maintain six wings each in the four phases of the Air Force force generation cycle: Prepare, Ready, Available to Commit, and Reset. Regular rotations would draw from the Available to Commit group, but in times of war, forces could be committed while in the ready, or “certified” phase, as well.

      “You have a bench in the certified phase that you might want to take some risk on depending on what’s going on in the world and forward deploy them,” Spain said. “That would be in the worst case: an existential fight that’s coming up and we’re willing to take that risk. You wouldn’t do that for day-to-day operations. But you do have [a ready capability] and they’re three-quarters of the way through that cycle and largely prepared to go.” 

      Rotational demand and availability would not be spread equally among the Active and reserve components, however. Drawn from both the Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve, the eight reserve component DCWs will have different deploy-to-dwell ratios, meaning more time home between deployments, and they may not be quite as fully equipped to deploy on their own.

      No deployable combat wing will deploy with “more than about four mission force elements,” Spain said. Typically, those elements have been equated with squadrons, and Spain said the reality is that in most cases a dozen aircraft would make up a force element for fighters.  

      Air & Space Warfighters in Action series presents featured speaker Lt. Gen. Adrian Spain, the Air Force’s Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations, during a June 18, 2024, event moderated by Air & Space Forces Association President and CEO Lt. Gen. Burt Field, USAF (Ret.) at AFA headquarters in Arlington, Virginia. Photo by Mike Tsukamoto/Air & Space Forces Magazine

      Equipping those fully will be key to making units fully combat ready.

      “Historically, in order to get to the deployable element, we kind of raided the follow-on force’s kit, in order to make sure the first 12 got out the door sufficiently,” Spain said. The Air Force would prefer not to have to do that, however, and this year’s unfunded priorities list included $612 million to bolster nine new elements, in the hope that Congress will buy out that deficit. 

      The exact makeup of the Deployable Combat Wings’ force elements may vary, but Spain said the wings will be designed to be modular enough that the command and support elements can take on other kinds of capabilities than whatever is their native force element.  

      “Where we are going to need to train the command echelon is to be able to receive forces of any type, because it’s probably going to be rare that the mission element that you have at your base is exactly what the crisis demands,” Spain said. “But I may need a command echelon and sustainment echelon … so they may go and the force elements may go either to a different place or not deployed at all, because I need F-16s versus F-22s at this time.” 

      PHOTOS: B-52 Flies over Red Sea and Arabian Peninsula

      PHOTOS: B-52 Flies over Red Sea and Arabian Peninsula

      June 17, 2024 | By Greg Hadley

      Air Force B-52 bombers roared over the Arabian Peninsula twice last week, flying alongside an American MC-130J and allied fighters during bomber task force missions.

      The Stratofortresses, originally from Minot Air Force Base, N.D., came from RAF Fairford, U.K., where they are currently deployed for a bomber task force. 

      The June 12 and June 14 flights “incorporated fighter escorts from several coalition nations,” Air Forces Central said in a release, though they did not disclose what nations flew alongside the B-52. The release noted that the flights included passes over the Red Sea and Arabian Gulf. 

      “Bomber Task Force missions highlight the U.S.’s ability to rapidly field combat airpower while enhancing training opportunities and interoperability for regional allies and partners operating alongside U.S. forces,” the release stated.

      On at least one flight, the B-52 was joined by a U.S. Special Operations Command-operated MC-130J. AFCENT noted in its release that the MC-130J took part in familiarization training this spring, with Airmen in the Middle East orienting themselves on “palletized effects”—cruise missiles on a pallet dropped out the back of cargo aircraft. 

      The B-52s’ tour over the Middle East comes as the region remains on edge. Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza continues, and Houthi rebels in Yemen have intensified their attacks on shipping in the Red Sea. Over the past several days, U.S. Central Command said it struck several Houthi missile launchers, sensors and drones, though it did not disclose what assets it used to conduct the strikes. 

      In April, B-1 bombers on a rotation in Spain deployed to Turkey for exercises, bringing them close to the Middle East. In February, B-1s flew from the continental U.S. to take part in dozens of airstrikes in Iraq, Syria, and Yemen. And last November, B-1s flew three missions in CENTCOM over the course of eight days. 

      It’s been a little while longer since a B-52 flew over the region—in March 2023, a B-52 from Minot was escorted by fighters from seven different countries during a bomber task force mission.