Within days of action by the Senate Defense Appropriations Committee eliminating funding to keep 18 attrition reserve B-52s at Minot AFB, N.D., Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-N.D.) struck a blow that would at least delay Air Force plans to retire any BUFFs anytime soon. The full Senate Appropriations Committee approved a Dorgan amendment requiring an independent study to evaluate whether retiring part of the B-52 fleet would create a “bomber gap.” Dorgan believes that the report will show that it makes little sense to retire the most “cost effective bombers in the military’s fleet.”
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth vowed to undertake far-reaching reforms on the way the U.S. military buys weapons, promising a sweeping overhaul of the way the Defense Department determines requirements, handles the acquisition process, and tests its kit. The fundamental goal, which Hegseth underscored in a 1-hour and 10-minute speech…
