If the Air Force budget number ($130.4 billion) seems a tad high in comparison to the other services (Army at $111.8 billion; Navy/Marine Corps at $127.4 billion), it’s probably because the DOD number includes what is termed non-blue dollars—$24.5 billion to be precise. The Air Force-specific 2007 budget amount is actually $105.9 billion, which is only slightly more than the $105.5 billion enacted for fiscal 2006. The nearly $25 billion “extra” the Pentagon would allocate to USAF goes toward programs and functions that support other services not the blue Air Force.
Three of four congressional committees with influence over defense policy have voted to change the official name of the Department of Defense to the Department of War—but final approval of the Pentagon rebrand is months away and not yet assured.