A court order saved the job of Ernie Fitzgerald in 1969, after the Air Force analyst told Congress about $2 billion in overruns on the C-5 cargo aircraft and incurred the wrath of the Nixon White House. Now, the 79-year old analyst says he’s in danger again, according to Time Magazine. He claims the Bush Administration has ignored his reports and took away his last two procurement analysts in 2002. Air Force officials, who told Time the service offered Fitzgerald two new jobs, believe the current “problem” is one of Fitzgerald’s making, since no one in the Air Force now who even know about his work on the C-5. The judge agreed. He rescinded the job protection order, noting that USAF had met its obligations.
The rate of building B-21 bombers would speed up if the fiscal 2026 defense budget passes. But it remains unclear how much capacity would be added, and whether the Air Force would simply build the bombers faster, or buy more.
