'Wiped Out': Air Force losing pilots and planes to cuts, scrounging for spare parts | Fox News

The highest tax revenues in history, still working toward a $750B deficit, 49M on EBT, we are bringing in pseudo refugees on the cuff and illegals are flooding in. We just have our priorities wrong.

Capt Seid Waddell - When the USAF leadership and military industrial complex constantly lobby for the development, deployment, and maintenance of the latest / greatest / fastest / highest flying complex integrated computerized aircraft . . . on which massively profitable large margin new aircraft development programs depend . . . of course they tend to neglect legacy aircraft systems . . . including most particularly maintenance, logistics, and operational readiness of older strategic aircraft . . . even when older strategic aircraft have been repurposed for low and slow close combat support missions the USAF is not so keen to fly. The B1B costs $62,000 per flight hour to operate versus a measly $11,500 for the A10 . . . ( $600 per hour for my favorite old UH-1D ) and the B1B must obviously fly far longer missions out of mainland because it cannot be flown out of rapid reaction bases in and/or near actually active combat zones. The USAF model of using large costly fast high flying stealth aircraft in conventional warfare against poorly equipped and poorly trained ground troops with minimal anti-aircraft and minimal air combat flying aircraft capabilities must change . . . or the huge costs of acquiring, maintaining, training, and operating large numbers of aircraft unsuited for the mission they are flying will outstrip our economic capacity and political will to maintain. This is why the 30 year old B1 operational program is dying . . . and plays a significant role in the USAF (and parts manufacturing partner) neglect of the 40 year old F16 program ( in favor of unacceptably long delays and cost overruns of the F35 program ). It makes no sense to fly expensive high performance aircraft against adversaries who have no significant air combat capabilities. Who does the USAF intend to fight with these expensive new platforms? Does anyone believe our adversaries ( Russians, North Koreans, Radicalized Insurgents, etc) are in any better position to fight an air war at this time or at any time in the foreseeable future???

How about diverting even a minuscule fraction of these USAF high flight programs into better equipping ground forces who are really fighting the ground wars against determined adversaries . . and could use an effective close support aerial weapons platform under their own control . . . something like the A10 that can be based and fly out of nearly any forward location to provide quick reaction and over watch capabilities on behalf our men on the ground? Warmest Regards, Sandy

http://www.businessinsider.com/chart-shows-hourly-cost-of-military-aircraft-2014-12

n.b. Please note my personal opinion does not represent the position of any government organization or agency and is presented solely for the purpose of social media discussion.

CMDCM Gene Treants

Cut military spending, Increase deployments and increase spending for Social Services programs, That is the Obama way. He is a real Democrat so keep your eye on his Clinton or Sanders. Talk about Elections having Consequences!