The Long Range Strike program, a Quadrennial Defense Review-mandated new bomber-like capability, will slip per the budget to be released today, but “less than 12 months, more than six,” a senior USAF official told reporters Friday on background. He said the change will give the service a little breathing room to help it complete various trade studies to determine just what kind of system—missiles, a bomber, an orbital strike system, or whatever—is best to meet the aggressive timetable. The QDR set a 2018 deadline.
Members of the House Armed Services Committee say the AIM-260 Joint Advanced Tactical Missile program has been set back three months due to the ongoing government shutdown. The comment is noteworthy because the JATM's status has been kept tightly under wraps.
