Strong Air Force vital to country
By Arthur R. MacFadden Lt. Col. USAF(retired)
Chattanooga Times Free Press

The current Defense Department Review has everything on the table for potential cuts.

With the base defense budget consuming 3.5 percent of GDP, that 3.5 percent is not the cause of our economic downturn.

But the Defense Department, with three wars going, is an easy target for cuts.

Going forward, leaders need to decide what kind of military we want to have, what risks we are willing to take and what missions we are willing to support as the nation’s key interests.

The Air Force procurement portfolio, slated for the 2020s, is extremely ambitious by necessity. Thirty years of major procurement delays have a price.

The American public expects its security and vital interests to be protected and that we will prevail.

We must provide needed equipment and trained manpower in sufficient quality and numbers, and at the time they are needed. We cannot wait for an imminent conflict to begin to modernize or replace our military.

Current equipment, subject to high usage, incurs continuing and increasing high maintenance costs.

This is a critical time for the nation. We need a strong, flexible and capable Air Force at the time and event of need.