* Does this make sense to have a gap! Don't they read the F-15 articles ! Doesn't somebody in the US Air Force higher command realized we don't have enough F-15 and F-16s?
F-22 Line Faces Gap Despite Supplemental
By Amy Butler/Aerospace Daily & Defense Report
Though Defense Secretary Robert Gates says he wants to keep the F-22 production line open at least until the next administration, there still will be a small gap in production for the Marietta, Ga., plant without at least some additional funding beyond the fiscal 2009 request and anticipated wartime supplemental funding.
Industry officials say that the first line shutdown activities for the F-22 will take place in October based on Lockheed Martin's multiyear contract with the U.S. Air Force; $4.1 billion for the program is included in the Pentagon's FY '09 request. The last of the stealthy twin-engine fighters would come off the line in the fourth quarter of 2011.
Gates says he wants to leave the next presidential administration the option of keeping the program alive. However, the plan to order four additional Raptors using supplemental war funding will not carry the entire F-22 line into 2009 and allow the next White House to decide the program's fate.
Each F-22 is built on a three-year cycle. The longest-lead parts are items such as bolts and fasteners as well as the bulkhead made by Boeing.
Long-lead parts for the first F-22 of Lot 10 (which would start beyond the current multiyear) must be ordered by October 2008, according to industry experts. Parts for the extra four fighters would provide less than two months of work beyond October, leaving a gap until the next administration takes office in January 2009. The next president would also likely need time to review major military programs before making a decision on F-22.
Without a sign from the Pentagon or Congress, the Lockheed Martin/Boeing F-22 team may have to begin negotiations on whether to support the line with internal funds pending a new administration taking office next year.
Boeing also is facing a line closure for its Long Beach, Calif., facility, which manufactures C-17s. Congress has funded that program for two years despite a lack of interest from the Pentagon. Without support from Congress this year, Boeing may have to halt work on 10 C-17s being built on the company dime without a buyer and shut down the line.
link
http://www.aviationweek.com/aw/gene...line=F-22 Line Faces Gap Despite Supplemental
F-22 Line Faces Gap Despite Supplemental
By Amy Butler/Aerospace Daily & Defense Report
Industry officials say that the first line shutdown activities for the F-22 will take place in October based on Lockheed Martin's multiyear contract with the U.S. Air Force; $4.1 billion for the program is included in the Pentagon's FY '09 request. The last of the stealthy twin-engine fighters would come off the line in the fourth quarter of 2011.
Gates says he wants to leave the next presidential administration the option of keeping the program alive. However, the plan to order four additional Raptors using supplemental war funding will not carry the entire F-22 line into 2009 and allow the next White House to decide the program's fate.
Each F-22 is built on a three-year cycle. The longest-lead parts are items such as bolts and fasteners as well as the bulkhead made by Boeing.
Long-lead parts for the first F-22 of Lot 10 (which would start beyond the current multiyear) must be ordered by October 2008, according to industry experts. Parts for the extra four fighters would provide less than two months of work beyond October, leaving a gap until the next administration takes office in January 2009. The next president would also likely need time to review major military programs before making a decision on F-22.
Without a sign from the Pentagon or Congress, the Lockheed Martin/Boeing F-22 team may have to begin negotiations on whether to support the line with internal funds pending a new administration taking office next year.
Boeing also is facing a line closure for its Long Beach, Calif., facility, which manufactures C-17s. Congress has funded that program for two years despite a lack of interest from the Pentagon. Without support from Congress this year, Boeing may have to halt work on 10 C-17s being built on the company dime without a buyer and shut down the line.
link
http://www.aviationweek.com/aw/gene...line=F-22 Line Faces Gap Despite Supplemental