While other news media are reporting what the Quadrennial Defense Review will contain, Mark Mazzetti of the Los Angeles Times has taken note of one thing it does not consider: another Iraq. In fact, a Pentagon official told Mazzetti that the Iraq regime change is “clearly a one-off.” The official added, “There is certainly no intention to do it again.” We call this further evidence of what appears to be another QDR without a solid foundation in fact. Let’s be real: The 2005 QDR, as Air Force Magazine Editor in Chief Robert Dudney indicated in December, is probably quite like its earlier brethren, a budget-cutting drill. No more, no less.
When the Air Force sets a new program baseline for the B-52 re-engining this fall, there will be “some” cost increase, because the project wasn't previously fully funded, and the Air Force has a better handle on actual supplier costs and knowledge from ground testing, program officials said.