President Bush plans to give Pakistan a “substantial discount”—or perhaps compensation of some sort—on its purchase of 36 F-16 aircraft to show appreciations for Islamabad’s efforts in the war on terror. According to The News, President Pervez Musharraf has received such assurance during one of several telephone conversations with Bush. (The two are set to meet face-to-face on Friday at the White House.) Congress, which probably still feels somewhat on the outs about the F-16 purchase, may take a different view.
The Air Force’s Hypersonic Attack Cruise Missile is behind schedule and may significantly overrun its expected cost, which could partially explain why the service is reviving the hypersonic AGM-183 Air-Launched Rapid-Response Weapon.