via BlackFive.
The defense budget for 2014 is starting to take shape and we are going to be taking a good look at some of the items in it. Money is obviously tight, so we need to make certain that it is spent wisely and for the right reasons. All too often politics, lobbying and factors that have nothing to do with national security push programs and spending. In an era of austerity we simply can’t afford this.
The Chairman’s mark of the Defense Authorization Act is out and there are many good things in there. Rep. Buck McKeon is a solid advocate for a strong defense and this is his chance to comment on priorities and goals for defense funding. Most of the relatively short document relates to policy and has some requirements for explanations of debacles like Benghazi. But there are also some funding items that don’t make much sense.
One of these is a requirement to buy F-18 aircraft, which is a bit of a head scratcher. We cancelled the F-22 program before we bought anywhere near as many true air superiority fighters as we should have. We have cut back severely the number of F-35s that we plan to buy, but somehow we can find the money to buy a completely different and significantly less capable bird. That smells distressingly like some corporate welfare for Boeing, who makes the F-18.
I am unaware of any purely tactical or strategic military argument for splitting the funding for our fighter aircraft. There was a time back in the day where we had the F-14, 15 & 16 birds with different mission profiles and we let Northrop, Boeing and Lockheed duke it out to see how many of each we were going to buy. But we came to the logical conclusion that too often led to a contest between retired generals to feather their own company’s nest.
Read it all at BlackFive.
I don't have an opinion.
What I do have is simmering anger. No. Make that boiling anger.
I hate being misunderstood so let me try this again.
I DESPISE THE THOUGHT THAT TWO AIRPLANES (F-35 & V-22) ARE GOBBLING UP THE ENTIRE MARINE CORPS BUDGET!!!
How bad are things from my viewpoint? We're going to cut the Marine's manpower to the barebones, not procure much needed replacements to the AAV, not buy the Marine Personnel Carrier, not update our fleet of MTVRs, make a questionable buy of lightly armored JLTVs, all because we are hyper dedicated to getting the F-35 and V-22!
I do not want the very nature of the US Marine Corps changed because of some gear. Gear is suppose to be a tool to help you do the job better, not become the service's reason for being. We do not need to become a quasi air force in green!
NOTE: The issue with the F-35 has been broken down into camps. Either your for it' or you're against it'....I'm in the Marine Corps camp. A real deal medium weight force that is expeditionary, can land on foreign shores, fight and win against technologically capable foes is what I'm all in on. Future foes will have IEDs, anti-armor systems and artillery. Protected transport for the infantry will be a must have. I don't see the AAV as meeting the challenges of the future.
