Air Force Secretary Michael Wynne left no doubt that he wants to buy more C-17s, but the Congressional restriction on retiring any C-5s is holding the Air Force hostage. He told Senate appropriators last week, “It bothers me greatly to see the C-17 line closed.” Wynne explained that the service has “between 20 and 30 [C-5 airlifters] that may be good candidates for standing down,” instead USAF has been forced into “husbanding the C-5s” with service-life extensions. The Congressional restriction on retiring any of the now 111 C-5s “has made almost certain that we will not get the [C-17] line extension that we’re looking for over the long term.” He said the fact that the nation’s “strategic lift line may go quiet” adds to “our burden of strategic risk.”
As the Air Force readied for its June 21-22 strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities, the service was also putting its Agile Combat Employment strategy into action, dispersing combat aircraft and Airmen from Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar in preparation for a possible Iranian retaliatory attack. Some defense experts say…
