The Air Force estimates that it would save approximately $325 million across the Fiscal 2011 future years defense plan if Congress grants the service’s request to retire 22 of the least reliable C-5A transports, says Maj. Gen. Susan Desjardins, Air Mobility Command’s director of strategic plans, requirements, and programs. Testifying Tuesday before the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee’s finance panel, Desjardins said these savings would come from the depot-level maintenance, flying hours, and modernization activities that these aircraft would otherwise require. She said making this move would help to eliminate the excess strategic airlift capacity identified in the Pentagon’s newest mobility study, MCRS-16, which examined the US military’s transport needs out to 2016. Further, it would enable the Air Force to have necessary manning and resources to shift 16 C-17s permanently to the air reserve component, she said. (Desjardins prepared remarks)
A recent seven-day exercise sent Air Force F-22s—along with other USAF aircraft—to austere, challenging environments across Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands. Agile Reaper, taking place for the second time after its inaugural edition last year, featured 800 Airmen and 29 aircraft across five different locations from April 10-16, training…