A Senate amendment to save the Air Force’s planned multiyear procurement for the F-22A Raptor passed Thursday—by a 70 to 28 vote. Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R-Ga.) proposed the amendment (see below), which would authorize the Air Force to enter into a multiyear contract, beginning in Fiscal 2007, for no more than 60 F-22s, but it specifically prohibits the service from implementing an incremental funding plan. The House also would prohibit an incremental buy and wants justification before approving a multiyear approach.
The Pentagon is considering ditching the Air Force’s plan to buy the E-7 Wedgetail as it looks to outsource the airborne target-tracking mission to space, defense officials indicated this week.