Considering the heat Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) has heaped on USAF over the past few years, his actions at Thursday’s Capitol Hill hearing on the Air Force budget were relatively benign. He pointed out that a lot of the ongoing military recapitalization is taking place in the Air Force and asked, “Do you think at some point we’re going to run into a brick wall?” He then asked service leader Michael Wynne to undertake a study of the costs of the new acquisitions, analyzing recent historic data on weapon system cost escalation to enable lawmakers to make educated decisions about where to spend. But, then McCain said, “If we’re going to have to make a decision between F-22 and Joint Strike Fighter, I’d like to make that decision sooner rather than later.” He added, “I’m not saying we are.” Hmmmm.
The last remaining T-1 Jayhawk at JBSA-Randolph, Texas, took its final flight to the "Boneyard" at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Ariz., on July 15. The 99th Flying Training Squadron will train pilots using T-6 and simulator until it gets T-7 Red Hawk in fiscal 2026.