Team Infidel
Forum Spin Doctor
Aerospace Daily & Defense Report
March 1, 2007
Expanding the size of the U.S. Army and Marine Corps could force the Air Force to expand its ground support units, Air Force Secretary Michael Wynne told Congress Feb. 28.
At a hearing on the Air Force's $110.77 billion budget request for fiscal 2008, Wynne said he was concerned that the planned Army and Marine Corps expansion could pose problems for his service.
"If you increase ground forces, you're increasing (air)lift demands," he said.
The Pentagon's plan to increase the end strength of the Army to 547,000 and the Marine Corps to 202,000 (DAILY, Feb. 20) comes as the Air Force is cutting its personnel by 40,000. Wynne and Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Michael Moseley also noted the Air Force has supplied 7,700 personnel to the Army to act as prison guards, truck drivers, and for ordnance disposal.
Wynne said he was not surprised that the November 2006 selection of the Boeing HH-47 as the next generation combat search and rescue aircraft (CSAR-X) sparked protests from competitors Lockheed Martin and Sikorsky.
"There are so few programs now," he said, that it was vital for contractors to "win everything that they can to stay alive." Wynne added: "The number of protests are rising as the number of programs are diminishing. It's a true dogfight out there to make sure that you'll be alive for the next competition."
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently upheld the protest of the Air Force's contract for more than 140 CSAR-X aircraft.
Wynne added that he hoped to deal "narrowly" with the GAO decision, meaning "whatever I could do to get it done quickly and get on with the program."
Moseley said he was concerned about holding up the process. "My fear is that we're going to get another set of delays," he said, adding that the Boeing Chinook was a good aircraft. "We've got some people in the Army flying that into some very bad places," he said.
Both Wynne and Moseley said the recent anti-satellite system test by China proves "space is no longer a sanctuary."
-- John M. Doyle
March 1, 2007
Expanding the size of the U.S. Army and Marine Corps could force the Air Force to expand its ground support units, Air Force Secretary Michael Wynne told Congress Feb. 28.
At a hearing on the Air Force's $110.77 billion budget request for fiscal 2008, Wynne said he was concerned that the planned Army and Marine Corps expansion could pose problems for his service.
"If you increase ground forces, you're increasing (air)lift demands," he said.
The Pentagon's plan to increase the end strength of the Army to 547,000 and the Marine Corps to 202,000 (DAILY, Feb. 20) comes as the Air Force is cutting its personnel by 40,000. Wynne and Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Michael Moseley also noted the Air Force has supplied 7,700 personnel to the Army to act as prison guards, truck drivers, and for ordnance disposal.
Wynne said he was not surprised that the November 2006 selection of the Boeing HH-47 as the next generation combat search and rescue aircraft (CSAR-X) sparked protests from competitors Lockheed Martin and Sikorsky.
"There are so few programs now," he said, that it was vital for contractors to "win everything that they can to stay alive." Wynne added: "The number of protests are rising as the number of programs are diminishing. It's a true dogfight out there to make sure that you'll be alive for the next competition."
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently upheld the protest of the Air Force's contract for more than 140 CSAR-X aircraft.
Wynne added that he hoped to deal "narrowly" with the GAO decision, meaning "whatever I could do to get it done quickly and get on with the program."
Moseley said he was concerned about holding up the process. "My fear is that we're going to get another set of delays," he said, adding that the Boeing Chinook was a good aircraft. "We've got some people in the Army flying that into some very bad places," he said.
Both Wynne and Moseley said the recent anti-satellite system test by China proves "space is no longer a sanctuary."
-- John M. Doyle