Strategy emerges to prevent more C-17 funding

[unhappycamper]

Strategy emerges to prevent more C-17 funding
By William Matthews - Staff writer
Posted : Wednesday Jul 14, 2010 21:02:15 EDT

As the 2011 defense budget creeps languidly through Congress, two senators have launched an effort to keep their colleagues from adding money to buy more C-17 cargo planes.

Sens. Tom Carper, D-Del., and John McCain, R-Ariz., held a hearing Tuesday so three senior Pentagon officials and two other military experts could testify — repeatedly — that the Air Force does not need any more C-17s.

Rather, the Air Force has an airlift surplus of at least 10 percent that could easily be expanded to 20 percent or more, the five witnesses agreed.

The Air Force hasn’t asked for more money to buy C-17s since 2007. That year the Air Force wanted 12, and Congress bought it 22. In 2008, the Air Force wanted none, but Congress bought 15. In 2009, the request was also zero, and Congress bought eight. In 2010, the Air Force once again asked for no C-17s, and lawmakers bought 10.

Carper said this year he has decided “to play offense” and get the Air Force unambiguously on the record as saying it wants no more C-17s before appropriations committees in the Senate and House again buy more of them.



unhappy camper comment: Way to go, Congress! 43 extra C-17s = $8,600,000,000.