CSM
Senior Member
well, there was this in my email box this am... planes, like those that service and fly them, don't last forever...
The Air Force has a bit of a problem these days. They really are seeking relevance on today's battlefield and by that I mean the vision of air power being the ultimate force has just not proven out. Our air arm can certainly set any country back into the stone age; unfortunately, that is not PC anymore, so once the major forces (read organized national forces) are defeated, the Air Force becomes airial recon or bus drivers for ground forces. The C-17 was supposed to be the next big procurement but that became overshadowed by the fighter community. Because of the current philosophical view regarding how wars will be fought, the fighter procurement is being cut. Iraq and the tactical situation there is having great impact on the acquisition communities of all the serevices.