Air Force officials are sounding the alarm in Washington on a possible long-term continuing resolution, saying the avoidance of a budget deal would stop 60 new starts and upgrades on existing programs. Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James, in a Wednesday state of the Air Force briefing at the Pentagon, said a long-term continuing resolution would delay upgrades to aircraft such as the M-9 Reaper, B-2, and B-52, among others. A continuing resolution would fund the Air Force at $1.3 billion less than the amount it requested, which would limit KC-46A production at 12, instead of 15 aircraft, cap the B-21 bomber program at Fiscal 2016 levels, and limit the production of joint direct attack munitions at Fiscal 2016 levels, a move that is “unacceptable in light of current operations” against ISIS, James said. (See also: Readiness Shortfalls.)
The Smithsonian’s announcement that an F-117A Nighthawk, tail number 85-0818, is headed to the Smithsonian Institution’s National Air and Space Museum, or NASM, is welcome news. The acquisition of this Nighthawk fills a long-standing historical gap—indeed, need—in the collections of what is generally considered the world’s premier air and space…
