Wearing Out Worn Out Planes
Worldwide War Pigs questions the notion that our well-used fighter fleet can make it until 2025:
The idea that a small portion (170-some) F-15Cs can make it to the year 2025 (the “golden eagles”) is a bad one. What is sickly amusing is that the F-15 and F-16 are still in production now and new buys can still take care of numerous kinds of USAF missions that don’t require stealth for a very long time. Yet the roulette table is open and USAF thinks that somehow, putting the money down on red and spinning the wheel on the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, something that is so early in it’s test phase is a workable solution to filling out the fighter numbers.
Bought in the 1980s, already old by the 1990s, long past their prime by the War on Terror, the legacy fighter force keeps winning all our wars with few thanks. Meanwhile, the unused F-22 Raptors are still guarding the Cold War bases of Japan and Korea, while the air generals plan for imaginary wars. In a sane world these things would not be.
More from the Dew Line.
It just seems common sense, that if these same legacy fighters are winning all our wars, why not just buy more of the same and have new airframes in the hands of our pilots when they need them. I’ve even written to my State Senator with this proposal, who is a USAF reserve pilot that served in Iraq, but its like I was speaking Greek. They can’t get over their last-century ideas of procurement and recognize the real revolution is not in platfroms like fighters, tanks, and warships, but in the new weapons and sensors they carry.
Mike @ February 1, 2009 at 7:56 am;
Exactly. Frankly I am disgusted in our politicians for ignoring obvious things like F-15s breaking up in mid-air, the need of a strong OPERATION NOBLE EAGLE and that the best economic stimuli is defense spending. We should be cranking out affordable homeland defense aircraft with decent range – I’m sure Canada, Australia, Japan and possibly Israel and Norway would take a long look. Except we already have some good candidates in the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet, F-15E and F-16 to fill the gap and in fact, the Aussies are using the Super Hornet to fill the gap between the 1960s F-111 and the 2010s F-35.
Not sure how long we can continue flying planes worn out from 3 decades of constant war, Josef.
After what I just read, only an idiot wouldn’t extend the F-22 production line for at least another 150 fighters OR buy 300 F-15s & F-16s.