A Cold Front Is Approaching: Are budget pressures endangering major aircraft programs? Surprisingly, Levin says no. He does not believe that termination awaits either the Air Force’s F/A-22 Raptor or the multi-service F-35 Fighter. Moreover, he does not believe the F/A-22 would be “reduced further,” though the F-35 could get a shave. Levin did not address the Air Force push to actually increase the F/A-22 production run to 381 aircraft.
As near-peer adversaries have increased their reach and lethality, the U.S. Air Force is accelerating the tanker fleet recapitalization and aggressively pulling forward the Next Generation Aerial Refueling System (NGAS) to meet the threat. Globally operating the KC-46A has advanced mission...