The Army’s $140.7 billion request in the FY ’09 president’s budget request is $12.3 billion, or 9.6 percent higher than the $128.9 billion FY ’08 projected for enacted funds and is intended to balance immediate warfighting needs with developing systems soldiers need for the future.
The budget was delivered to Congress Feb. 5.
The Army requests $51.8 billion, or 38 percent of the service budget, for military personnel. Another 29 percent, $40.2 billion, is requested for operation and maintenance. The procurement request of $24.6 billion makes up 17 percent of the budget, and 7 percent of the budget is the request for $10.5 billion for research, development, test and evaluation (RDT&E).
Army Aviation requests $5 billion that would allow it to replace the OH-58D Kiowa Warrior with the Armed Reconnaissance Helicopter (ARH) and retire the aging UH-1 Iroquois, better known as the Huey, and OH-58 Kiowas with the commercial off the shelf UH-72A Lakota Light Utility Helicopter (LUH). The Army would also continue replacing aging C-12, C-23 and C-26 fixed-wing aircraft with the C-27J Joint Cargo Aircraft.
The service requests:
$439 million to procure 28 ARHs. Bell Helicopter Textron [TXT] builds the ARH.
$224 million to procure 36 LUHs. The European Aeronautic Defence and Space Co. (EADS) builds the LUH.
$1.2 billion for 16 new and 23 remanufactured F-model CH-47 Cargo helicopters.
$637 billion for AH-64 Apache upgrades/conversions, including 32 Longbow Block II models, target acquisition designation sight/pilot night vision sensors and other safety and reliability modifications.
$1.1 billion UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters.
$491 million for aircraft survivability equipment.