By Marina Malenic
The Air Force on Friday sent lawmakers a list of five mission critical items for which funding has not been requested in President Barack Obama’s Fiscal Year 2011 Defense Department budget–chief among them, programs for maintenance and sustainment of the aging Air Force fleet.
Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Norton Schwartz’s Feb. 19 letter to the heads of the four congressional defense subcommittees outlines the service needs that “have emerged since the FY ’11 President’s Budget build.”
“All requirements on the list have high military value, improving our readiness posture and operational capabilities to win today’s fight,” Schwartz writes. “Three of the five items–weapon system sustainment, theater posture and battlefield airmen equipment/Joint Terminal Attack Controller modeling and simulation–are critical enablers to the warfighter and were included on Combatant Commanders’ integrated priority lists.
Topping the list is a request for $337.2 million for weapon system sustainment. Specifically, the Air Force would like to fund additional maintenance activities on one B-2 bomber, two C-5 airlifters and 11 KC-135 tankers; Service Life Extension Programs (SLEPs) and structural inspections on four A-10 fighters; and engine overhauls on six C-5s.
Another $70 million for intra-theater logistics is requested. The Air Force would use the funds for maintenance and fuel-related expenses.
Some $55 million is needed for space superiority and global intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR), according to the document. The money would fund the Integrated Collaborative Command and Control (C3) Processing Exploitation and Dissemination (PED) System.
The Air Force also wants $28.7 million for the addition of Predator and other drone software into Joint Terminal Attack Controller (JTAC) simulators and related upgrades.
And, finally, the air service would like approximately $57 million to replace 674 specialized vehicles and perform other upgrades on Air Force Reserve and Air National Guard equipment. The document lists ambulances, dump trucks, snow plows and bulldozers among the vehicles in dire need of replacement.