One might ask why not have fewer squadrons of F-22A Raptors, since the total number is now limited to 183? The top civilian for the Air Force told lawmakers that it’s a question of “depth of leadership.” Michael Wynne explained that the service has about three-plus wings of hardware deployed to Southwest Asia, “but we have five wings worth of leadership deployed.” By having seven squadrons of F-22As, said Wynne, the Air Force gains the necessary “depth that we can deploy the airplane and fight with it.”
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.