http://worldcat.org/entity/work/id/18244616

A look at tomorrow's tactical air forces

Although the Department of Defense (DoD) is currently decreasing the numbers of fighter aircraft, its planned forces require inventories of about 3,500 planes. To modernize its forces, DoD expects to acquire three new tactical fighter and attack aircraft over the next several decades - the F-22 for the Air Force, the F/A-18E/F for the Navy, and the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) - a multipurpose plane being developed for all three services. DoD expects all three planes to be more effective than the planes they will replace. They will also be extremely expensive. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates that the total cost to develop and acquire about 4,400 planes amounts to about $350 billion, without factoring in inflation. estimate includes funds for development and procurement). Over the 1997-2001 period, DoD says it will spend about $33 billion (in 1997 dollars) on the three new aircraft. CBO's analysis of the proposal for fighter and attack aircraft points to the following issues: U.S. fighter fleets now outmatch the fighter fleets of any potential adversary; DoD plans to purchase enough tactical aircraft to offset most of the planned retirement of older aircraft through 2020; DoD's plans assume that tactical aircraft will operate for long periods. As a result U.S. tactical aircraft fleets will reach unprecedented ages; DoD's planned aircraft purchases for fighter fleets will be costly and will require changes in spending patterns; and The Joint Strike Fighter's nontraditional program structure could mask problems for DoD's plans. DoD and the Congress may want to consider alternatives to the current plan to address problems of affordability and aging. This study examines strategies for addressing those problems.

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