The top two Air Force leaders briefed reporters at the Pentagon Tuesday on some QDR issues, reprising much of what we’ve already reported. (See DR 12/12/05) One exception is that USAF plans to procure a total of 183 new F-22 Raptors, not 185 as we were told earlier. The plan, according to Air Force Secretary Michael Wynne, includes keeping the F-22 production line going until 2010. He called it a “national imperative” to keep a fifth generation fighter line warm until the next one (the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter) cranks up.
The KC-Z4, a blended wing body tanker concept being developed by startup JetZero, could fuel larger groups of aircraft at longer range to hold more targets at risk, company officials say.