With just slightly more than two weeks to go until President Obama must choose whether to keep the F-22 in production, Lockheed Martin is portraying the airplane as a model program exceeding expectations. Larry Lawson, Lockheed’s program manager, told the Daily Report yesterday that nearly half of the F-22s delivered last year had zero defects—an “unprecedented” achievement in fighters, he said. “There are some fighter programs … that have never delivered a zero-defect aircraft,” even at maturity, Lawson said. (Note his emphasis on “never”) And, none have been as complex as the F-22. The learning curve is the highest ever seen for a fighter, costs are down about a third from early lots, and the Raptor has enjoyed wild success in Northern Edge and Red Flag exercises, he said.
Top Lawmakers Want 15 Percent Pay Raise for Enlisted Troops
April 19, 2024
A new law introduced by Congress would raise the pay rate 15 percent for junior enlisted troops and seek improvements on a range of quality of life issues, such as pay and compensation, child care, housing, health care access, and military spouse employment.