ANG Pilot Seeks Court-Martial
Shortly after the Air Force offered nonjudicial punishment in
lieu of court-martial, Maj. Harry Schmidt, the Illinois Air National
Guard F-16 pilot who mistakenly bombed Canadian troops in Afghanistan
in April 2002, demanded to stand trial instead. Four Canadians
were killed and eight wounded in the incident.
Schmidt said June 25 he wants to clear his name.
Lt. Gen. Bruce Carlson, commander of 8th Air Force, had reviewed
the evidence and recommendations from an Article 32 hearing held
earlier this year and, on June 19, had announced he would issue
a letter of reprimand to Maj. William Umbach, the lead F-16 pilot
involved in the incident, and initiate Article 15 action against
Schmidt.
Umbach, who did not release weapons, was cited for “leadership
failures.” Carlson also recommended the service accept Umbach’s
request to retire.
Schmidt allegedly failed to follow an order to make certain his
target was not friendly and to “stand by,” as instructed
by an Airborne Warning and Control System aircraft. He has maintained
that there was no warning that coalition forces were in the area
on night exercises.
For additional background, see “Aerospace World” news
items: “Pilots Blamed in Canadian Deaths,” August 2002,
p. 16; “USAF Changes Tarnak Farms Disciplinary Authority,” September
2002, p. 21; “Air Force Charges Two Pilots in Deaths of Canadians,” October
2002, p. 19; “The Case of the ANG Pilots: Blame, Support,
and Conflicting Testimony,” February, p. 20.
USAF May Extend AEFs The Air Force is considering a permanent change to the air and
space expeditionary force rotation cycle, according to the head
of AEF planning.
Maj. Gen. Timothy A. Peppe told Stars and Stripes that deployments
may be extended to 120 days from the current 90-day AEF template.
The Air Force already intends
to use two temporary 120-day deployments to help cover a reconstitution period
for forces returning from duty in Southwest Asia.
Going to a longer deployment would increase the time that personnel
spend at
their home base between AEFs, “and that would be a good thing,” Peppe
said.
Navy Eyes Longer Deployments
The Navy will extend the deployments of its carrier battle groups
beyond the
traditional six months if doing so will help meet wartime “surge” demands,
said Adm. Vernon Clark, Chief of Naval Operations.
“
I am not going to short-cycle one [carrier] home [just] to say, ‘We made
it in six months,’ and then have a ripple effect through three or four more
battle groups,” Clark told reporters in June. “We’re going to
be able to deploy five or six [battle groups] any time [the President] wants
to,” he added.
During peacetime, the Navy typically has three of its carrier
battle groups deployed at any given time.
Ability to surge does not mean the Navy will arbitrarily extend
deployments, however. Clark noted there will be negative morale
and recruiting consequences
if routine six-month deployments become nine months long.
Promotions Imbroglio Ends
It took a commitment from the White House, but, on June 23, Idaho
Sen. Larry E. Craig (R) agreed to release the last of the 212 Air
Force officer promotions
he had placed on hold.
The Air Force, in turn, had to meet with Craig to discuss adding
more C-130 transports to the Air National Guard unit at Gowen
Field in Boise. (See “Aerospace
World: C-130s for Promotions?” July, p. 10.)
The June 23 releases were for 18 general officer promotions.
The dispute became public before Craig relented on promotions
for more than a hundred lower-ranking officers.
According to Craig, the Air Force seven years ago promised it
would base eight C-130 transports at Gowen Field. “In 1996,
Idaho received four C-130s in what the undersecretary of the Air
Force at the time said was the ‘first
installment’ of eight aircraft,” Craig said in a statement.
Since then, “I have secured over $40 million in military
construction dollars in anticipation of a full squadron” of
eight aircraft, Craig added.
Plans Set for Tanker Basing
The Air Force in June announced its preferred plan for basing
the 100 KC-767 aerial refueling aircraft it expects to lease from
Boeing.
(See “100 Tankers,” p.
64.) According to USAF’s “tanker roadmap” the following bases
will be affected:
Fairchild AFB, Wash., will receive 32 KC-767s by 2010 and will get up to $200
million in military construction funds.
Grand Forks AFB, N.D., will receive 32 KC-767s by 2009 and $176
million in construction funds.
MacDill AFB, Fla., will receive 32 KC-767s by 2011 and some $200
million in milcon funds.
Robins AFB, Ga., will eliminate its existing tanker inventory,
creating room for future missions.
The remaining four KC-767s will be backup inventory. The lease
arrangement will also allow the Air Force to retire its 133
aged KC-135Es.
Air Reserve Component units at the following bases will transition
from E model KC-135s to R models as part of the tanker realignment:
- Salt Lake City, Utah
- Bangor, Maine
- Pittsburgh, Pa.
- Forbes Field, Kan.
- McGhee Tyson ANGB, Tenn.
- McGuire AFB, N.J.
- Scott AFB, Ill.
- Sioux City, Iowa
- Beale AFB, Calif.
- Phoenix, Ariz.
- Selfridge ANGB, Mich.
The basing plan is contingent on Congressional approval of the
tanker leasing plan.
Short War Cost Less
The relatively quick conclusion of major combat operations in
Iraq meant the war cost less than government projections.
“
The business plan for the war was roughly as successful as the military plan,” Mitch
Daniels, outgoing director of the Office of Management and Budget, told USA Today.
The expense projections “look pretty darn good” he
added.
Congress in March approved $62.6 billion to pay for combat
operations and deployments. However, compared to prewar projections,
there
were fewer precision
weapons
expended and there were fewer oil well fires and fewer refugees to attend
to than expected.
Lawmakers Want B-1s Back
In House and Senate versions of the Fiscal 2004 defense authorization
bills, lawmakers proposed that the Air Force bring back the majority
of the B-1
bombers the service plans to retire by Sept. 30.
The action would require the Air Force to return to service 23
of the 32 B-1s destined for retirement.
The Air Force opposes the move, noting in a statement that it
would cost more than $1.1 billion through Fiscal 2009 to retain
the
aircraft. This funding
is “simply
not available elsewhere in the Air Force budget,” according to a USAF
spokesman.
The lawmakers authorized $20.3 million “to begin the regeneration
of the 23 B-1B aircraft,” the House report on the bill states.
An Air Force official described the $20.3 million figure as “nothing,” given
that it is less than two percent of the total funds needed to keep the B-1s
in service. USAF decided to draw down the B-1 fleet from 93 to 60 aircraft
to free
up funds needed to upgrade and sustain the remaining aircraft in the fleet.
According to the USAF statement, forcing the Air Force to bring
back the bombers without properly funding them “threatens
to undo all the gains” USAF
has made in B-1 reliability and performance.
USAF Faults Pilots, ATC
On June 11—more than two years after two F-15Cs crashed in
Scotland, killing both pilots—the Air Force released accident
investigation findings that faulted the pilots and a Royal Air
Force air traffic controller.
USAF investigators determined that a breakdown in “terrain
avoidance responsibilities” led
to the deadly March 2001 accident.
Lt. Col. Kenneth Hyvonen and Capt. Kirk Jones were on a low-level
training flight when they flew into a mountain.
The F-15C Eagles, from RAF Lakenheath, UK, crashed into the snow-covered
Cairngorm Mountains after the pilots descended below a safe altitude while
lacking “positive
visual contact with the ground,” the accident board determined.
It was four days before the bodies of both pilots were recovered.
(See “Aerospace
World: Two USAF F-15s Crash in Scotland,” May 2001, p. 14.)
The release of the investigation report was delayed for more than
a year by the court-martial of the British air traffic controller,
who was acquitted
of professional
negligence.
Navy Down One Carrier
USS Constellation, the Navy’s second-oldest aircraft carrier,
will be retired this month.
The retirement will leave the sea service
one carrier short of its
standard level for about a year, as Constellation’s replacement, Ronald
Reagan, is still under construction.
Ronald Reagan is not expected to reach its home port at NAS North
Island, Calif., until 2004. The new carrier will first deploy
sometime in 2005, according
to
Navy plans.
Constellation served a seven-month tour in support of Gulf War
II, during which it launched 1,500 combat sorties that delivered
1.3 million pounds
of munitions. News Notes
- USAF plans to base eight
C-17 airlifters in Hawaii, primarily to transport a planned
Army brigade
of 300
Stryker armored vehicles. The aircraft are expected to
arrive in Fiscal 2006.
- Pentagon officials approved a $900 million project to construct
a high-speed fiber optic network connecting US defense command
posts around the world.
- Rough times for the US semiconductor industry threaten the
development of new military systems, said Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman
(D-Conn.)
in a June white paper. He asserted that China and other East
Asian countries use government subsidies to boost their computer
chip
manufacturing base at the expense of US companies. If the
trend continues, he said, the US will eventually become dependent
on
potentially unreliable foreign sources for high-end semiconductors
necessary for advanced weapons systems. He suggested that
tax breaks could help strengthen the US manufacturing base.
- The Senate on June 23 confirmed Lt. Gen. John W. Rosa Jr.
to be the new superintendent at the Air Force Academy.
- The Army plans to develop uniforms and helmets wired with sensors
and connected to a common network. General Dynamics, which
received a contract for up to $3 billion June 12, is to provide
the first
prototype by 2006 and outfit the first soldiers by 2010.
The helmet will hold a camera, Global Positioning System antenna,
and receivers.
Images will be viewed via an eyepiece.
- In June, Air Force One—for the first time since Gulf War
I in 1991— flew across Iraq as it transported President
Bush to the Middle East.
- Pentagon spokeswoman Victoria Clarke, assistant secretary
of defense for public affairs, resigned June 20, citing a desire
to spend
more time with her family. Lawrence Di Rita, a special assistant
to Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld, is serving as
acting
spokesman.
- On June 12, Tallil AB, Iraq, received its first commercial
cargo aircraft since coalition forces secured the base during
Operation
Iraqi Freedom. Other military-contract commercial airplanes
are expected to follow. Falcon Express Cargo Airlines from Dubai,
United Arab Emirates, is scheduled to make three deliveries
per
week,
according to Maj. Seann Cahill, commander of the 407th Expeditionary
Logistics Readiness Squadron.
- DOD plans to move its Internet Protocol 4-based systems and
equipment to IP 6 by 2008, said John P. Stenbit, DOD’s chief information
officer. The new version, which expands IP address space, improves
security, eases mobile communications, and generally enhances
service, will enable the Pentagon to integrate elements of its
Global Information
Grid and move toward “net-centric warfare and operations.”
- President Bush on June 5 established a spectrum policy initiative
to develop recommendations to improve radio frequency spectrum
management policies and procedures for the federal government
and to address state, local, and private spectrum use.
- Two USAF organizations on June 4 received the David Packard
Award for Acquisition Excellence. The Joint Direct Attack Munition
Joint Project Office delivered JDAMs in half the time and
at
half the
cost as projected. The Passive Attack Weapon quick reaction
capability team delivered a complete and operationally tested
system in
less than 100 days.
- On June 13, Maj. Jeffrey Olesen, a U-2 pilot, received the
2002 Koren Kolligian Jr. Trophy for his actions to safely land
his
aircraft when the engine malfunctioned during a 2001 Operation
Southern
Watch mission over Iraq. After exhausting established tech
procedures to fix the problem, he had to put the engine in idle,
where it
became stuck, causing the U-2 to operate like a glider. There
was no checklist covering descent from the U-2’s normal
operating altitude of 70,000 feet with an engine in idle.
Olesen is assistant
director of operations for the 1st Reconnaissance Squadron,
Beale AFB, Calif.
- Retired MSgt. Trinidad Castinado on June 2 received the Air
Medal, second oak leaf cluster, for his actions nearly 60 years
earlier
during a bombing mission over Germany. The original paperwork
had been lost, but Castinado’s supervisor at Kirtland AFB,
N.M., who heard about the airman’s heroism, prompted a
search for records to confirm the award. On a 1944 bombing
run to a
key target
in Germany, Castinado, a gunner on a B-24, gave his oxygen
mask to the radio operator whose mask had failed to work and
who had
been ordered to bail out as the bomber climbed to 10,000 feet.
Castinado parachuted from the bomber, despite the danger at
that altitude, since the radio operator was more important
to the
mission.
- The Library of Congress on May 22 celebrated Bob Hope’s
birthday with a special tribute. Hope, who turned 100 on May 29,
performed
for USO audiences through World War II, Korea, Vietnam, and the
1991 Gulf War. The library now has a permanent exhibit, “Bob
Hope Gallery of American Entertainment,” housing more than
85,000 pages of Hope’s jokes and other material from his
80 years in show business.
Maintainers Set Record MC Rate
The 7th Bomb Wing at Dyess AFB, Tex., surpassed the standard
67 percent mission capable rate for B-1 bombers for 12 straight
months. It’s the first time
a unit has set such a record for the B-1.
Maintainers began the record run last June and culminated it with
a 76.1 percent MC rate in May, according to unit officials.
The MC rates are determined by the percent of a unit’s assigned
aircraft that are ready to perform missions.
The Dyess success rates were attributed to the increased funding
for spares and parts that then began flowing through the pipeline.
“
We have more parts on the shelf now, have less cannibalization actions, and less
weekend maintenance duties,” said CMSgt. Douglas Fournier, 7th Operations
Group maintenance superintendent. He added, “Morale is the highest it’s
been in years.”
USAF To Revise MC Rates
Air Force officials are developing new methods to calculate its
mission capable rate goals to improve how the service buys, operates,
and retires
aircraft.
They intend to submit the new methods to senior leaders by late summer.
According to Defense News, Gen. John P. Jumper, USAF Chief of
Staff, ordered changes to be made to the current MC rate process
during
February’s Corona
meeting, a quarterly meeting of top Air Force leaders.
At the same meeting, Air Force Secretary James G. Roche established
a new service panel to track aircraft as they fly and age. The
intent is for
the panel to
certify the airworthiness of USAF aircraft.
Appropriators Cut Topline
The House Appropriations Committee allocated $368.6 billion to
defense in its version of the Fiscal 2004 spending bill—$3
billion less than requested. The reason: DOD did not spend all
it was given for the war in Iraq.
Committee chairman C.W. Bill Young (R-Fla.) said the allocation
is an agreed-upon starting point for budget deliberations with
Senate appropriators.
Major SRB Shift
USAF recently cut the selective re-enlistment bonuses for 47 career
fields and decreased the amounts in some 53 others. At the same
time, it added
or boosted
SRBs for another 40.
The additions and increases took effect June 4, while the decreases
and cuts were to begin July 4.
The cuts reflect increased retention rates in some career fields,
according to Maj. Gen. Peter U. Sutton, USAF’s director
of learning and force development.
He said, too, that USAF will continue to shift the bonuses based
on the needs of the service. The bonuses provide up to $60,000
for enlisted members
in
certain skills.
Advancing GPS III To Cost More
Moving up the launch date from 2012 to 2010 for Global Positioning
System III satellites would cost more than $300 million in funding
through 2009,
OSD officials
have determined.
Of that, $45 million would be needed just for Fiscal 2004.
The “quick look” figures were developed in response
to a question from Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, according
to Inside the Air Force. Rumsfeld
had issued a “snowflake” memo in February to his staff asking
why the GPS III would not launch in 2010.
Other higher priorities led the Pentagon to zero out the Fiscal
2004 funding for GPS III.
Defense authorization committees in the House and Senate restored $45 million
and $80 million, respectively. Budget resolution of the program awaits
markup by the House and Senate Appropriations Committees.
Mini-Decoy Development Begins
Officials at Eglin AFB, Fla., have begun development of an air-launched
decoy that is designed to draw enemy fire. By doing so, it will disclose
enemy
air defense capabilities and help keep pilots out of harm’s way. (See
artist’s
concept at left.)
Officials awarded Raytheon $88 million to develop the Miniature
Air-Launched Decoy and deliver 1,500 units by 2011 at a maximum
unit cost of $125,000.
CAP Seeks Sponsors
Civil Air Patrol in June launched a Corporate Partner Program,
a marketing arrangement with corporations to support CAP’s
activities in homeland security, the war on drugs, and youth development.
The program allows businesses of any size to use the CAP name
and corporate partner mark in advertising, marketing, and promotions.
Retired USAF Col. Al Allenback, CAP executive director, noted
that corporations supported CAP and other civil defense organizations
in the 1940s and
1950s.
Raptor Cuts Undermine “Buy to Budget” Plan
Both House and Senate lawmakers reduced USAF’s request
for F/A-22 Raptor funding in the Fiscal 2004 defense authorization
bill. The move flies in the face of the “buy to budget” strategy
and could signal that USAF will not be able to reach its fleet
goal of 381 F/A-22s.
The Air Force sought $3.7 billion to pay for 22 Raptors
next year. The Senate authorization bill cut the F/A-22 budget
request
by $217 million, effectively reducing next year’s quantity
to 20.
House authorizers also cut the 2004 request—by $161
million—citing
Fiscal 2003 program efficiencies as justification.
However, such efficiencies are at the heart of the buy-to-budget
agreement USAF reached with OSD. Under the agreement, USAF
can buy as many Raptors as possible for a set amount of money
each year. OSD views that as incentive for the service to keep
the cost of the airplane down.
For instance, in 2003 the Air Force initially requested
23 Raptors but lowered the quantity to 20 when developmental
problems
forced the service to reprogram some funds from production
to development accounts. USAF later determined that new efficiencies
would allow the service to buy an extra aircraft in 2003 and
remain within its budget.
Service officials had counted on the buy-to-budget strategy
to enable them to eventually purchase 381 aircraft—the
baseline number needed for its 10 air and space expeditionary
force structure.
In addition to the amount House authorizers deem should
be cut due to program efficiencies, they stipulated that
improvements
must be made to the aircraft’s advanced software or they
will remove another $136 million from the F/A-22 account.
By mid-June, the Congressional appropriators had not yet finalized
their versions of the 2004 budget. |
Report: Academy Lost Focus on Assault Problem
The Air Force working group looking into sexual assault
allegations from current and former cadets at the Air Force
Academy
found no evidence of systemic acceptance of sexual assault,
cadet
mistreatment, or avoidance of responsibility among the
academy leadership.
However, focus on the problem of sexual assault had waned
in recent years, the group determined.
USAF General Counsel Mary L. Walker headed the group, which
began its investigation in February. Walker released their
report June 19.
It stated, “A number of cultural and process matters
are problematic.” They include the high incidence of
alcohol use in assault cases and the lack of coordination
between
units responsible for responding to charges of sexual assault.
“
Direct focus by the superintendents on sexual assault issues
appeared to gradually lessen after 1997 ... [due] to competing
demands,” the report noted.
The cadet environment was also found to be troublesome,
in that there exists a climate of “gender-based comments
about women [and] off-color jokes,” while cadets frequently
place loyalty to their peers above values.
Overall, the report conceded, “It is difficult to establish
the extent of the sexual assault issue at the academy.” The
academy defines and records assaults differently than the
Air Force.
The working group recommended integrating all agencies
responsible for responding to complaints and involving
academy leaders
in victim support and protection of privacy. Privacy and
support were two areas where victims often misunderstood
the process
after they filed a complaint.
An independent Congressionally mandated panel was created
in late May and held its first public hearing June 23.
The seven-member
committee, appointed by Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld,
is headed by Tillie K. Fowler, a lawyer and former Republican
Congresswoman. (See “Aerospace World: DOD Names Air
Force Academy Review Panel,” July, p. 15.)
One member of the panel—Amy McCarthy, a United Airlines
pilot and academy graduate—already stepped down amid
concerns over her ability to be impartial. She had been
publicly skeptical
of claims of rape by female cadets, according to the New
York Times on the Web.
On June 26, McCarthy was replaced by Anita M. Carpenter,
who is chief executive officer of the Indiana Coalition
Against Sexual Assault and a noted victim’s advocate. |
Lockheed Martin, Boeing Face Off Over EELV
Defense giants Boeing and Lockheed Martin squared off in
court when Lockheed filed suit June 10 against its longtime
rival.
The lawsuit claims Boeing employees, one of whom previously
worked for Lockheed, systematically stole proprietary information
that helped Boeing win 19 of 28 lucrative Evolved Expandable
Launch Vehicle contracts.
According to the suit, Boeing employees used inside information
about Lockheed’s
EELV bid to ensure they could offer a “lower cost, technically superior
proposal.”
The result was “Lockheed Martin’s ongoing loss
of a significant portion of the Air Force space launch business
over a 10-year period,” adversely
impacting Lockheed’s future business prospects, the company alleged.
Boeing won all seven of the initial EELV launches and 19
of the first 28 missions. This was “seen by the marketplace
as tacit endorsement of Boeing’s
launch vehicle over Lockheed Martin’s, making it much more difficult” for
Lockheed to compete for commercial launches, the lawsuit alleged.
Boeing also took action—in the court of public opinion.
In an unusual move, the company placed full page ads in several
nationally prominent newspapers the
day before the lawsuit was filed, admitting that some employees had “behaved
unethically” but defending the company’s overall integrity.
In the ads, Boeing Chairman and CEO Philip M. Condit wrote
that “the actions
of a few individuals” are not representative of the company as a whole.
However, as a large organization, Boeing is “not always perfect,” Condit
added.
Lockheed Martin noted in its lawsuit that at least one of
the individuals accused of the industrial espionage was
terminated for “possessing and distributing
Lockheed Martin EELV-related proprietary documents during the EELV competition.” |
The Military Is the Most Trusted US Institution
Americans are more confident in the military than any other
US institution, according to a recent Gallup poll. In the
30th annual installment of Gallup’s “Confidence
in Institutions” survey, four-fifths of Americans have “a
great deal” or “quite a lot” of confidence
in the military, the highest level of trust of the 15 institutions
included in the poll.
The military was also the most trusted institution among
younger Americans aged 18-49. More than three-quarters of
the younger
demographic expressed confidence in the military.
The only areas to receive votes of confidence from more than
half of those surveyed were the military, the police (61 percent),
and the Presidency (55 percent). Organized religion and banks
rated 50 percent each.
Trust in the military has made great strides over the last
30 years. When the military was first added to the survey in
1975, with memories of Vietnam still fresh in people’s
minds, only about 60 percent of Americans expressed confidence
in the military. Six years later, shortly before the Reagan
Administration’s defense buildup, the number had dropped
even lower to 50 percent.
The highest rating Gallup has recorded thus far for confidence
in the military came in 1991, after Operation Desert Storm,
when it reached 85 percent. 
|
Space Struggles With Four Systemic Challenges
Military space programs face four systemic problems that
historically have resulted in “the majority” taking
extra time to develop and going over budget, according
to two June reports
from the General Accounting Office.
Some of these problems are being addressed in new military
space programs, but some of the same hurdles remain. Common
problems include:
- Poorly defined requirements or changing requirements
once a program has begun.
- Bad investment practices, such as optimistic cost estimates
and shifting funds.
- Poor acquisition strategies, such as reducing competition
to meet schedules.
- Reliance upon poorly understood technologies, especially
software.
GAO found that the Space Based Infrared System-High missile
warning system and the Advanced Extremely High Frequency military
satellite communications system suffered from all four of these
types of problems.
The Congressional watchdog agency did report that DOD has
made some progress in addressing these root causes.
Further, GAO noted that “many satellites launched over
the past two decades have lasted longer than expected.” It
cited the Defense Support Program satellites that currently
provide missile warning as having operated “well past
design lifetime.” |
Veterans Task Force Issues Report, Sparks Fly
Why do the Department of Defense and Department of Veterans
Affairs conduct separate physical exams of veterans, one
before discharge and one afterward?
What is the reason for separate purchasing systems? Why
are VA and DOD medical record systems incompatible? According to a federal task force study, Congress and the
President should demand closer coordination of staff, facilities,
and
other resources of these two mammoth health care systems.
The 129-page report of the President’s Task Force to
Improve Health Care Delivery for Our Nation’s Veterans,
delivered to President Bush on May 28, recommends greater
collaboration
to control a combined $50 billion cost and to ensure a “seamless
transition” for veterans from military to VA health
care.
One recommendation would set the VA budget high enough to
fully fund health care for enrolled veterans in Priority
Groups 1
through 7. Group 1 veterans have service-connected disabilities
of 50 percent or more. Group 7 veterans have no service-connected
ailments but are relatively poor, having incomes above a
national VA means test but below a government geographic
index of pay
adequacy.
The number of enrollees in Groups 1 through 7 grows by 360,000
a year.
Left out of the new funding scheme would be Group 8 veterans,
who have no service-connected ailments and who are not in
poverty. These veterans first were offered access to VA health
care
in 1998 in return for agreeing to co-payments. Their enrollment
has grown by 220,000 a year and was suspended in January
to ease an access problem for all veterans.
The report urges the President and Congress to work together
to end this “unacceptable” access status and an
obvious mismatch between demand and resources.
The report also calls for:
- Making electronic medical records between DOD and VA
compatible by Fiscal 2005.
- A joint DOD-VA formulary for prescription drugs.
- Joint procurement of medical services and equipment.
- More joint construction ventures.
The task force was formed two years ago to recommend ways
in which DOD and VA could better collaborate on veteran care.
Rep. Christopher H. Smith (R-N.J.), chairman of the House
Veterans’ Affairs
Committee, described the task force report as “magnificent” and
moved quickly on the controversial full-funding provision.
(See “Action in Congress,” p. 20.)
However, the plan was attacked by another senior member
of the House panel, Rep. Steve Buyer (R-Ind.). Buyer charged
that the panel had been “hijacked” by several task
force members with close ties to large veterans service organizations.
How else, asked Buyer, could one explain the task force recommendation
to pay for health care for all enrolled veterans, including
those with no service-connected injuries?
Buyer said in an interview that the report was not responsive
to the goals set out in its charter but had instead been
guided by political considerations.
What is clogging the VA system, said Buyer, is not a shortage
of money but the fact that Congress in 1996 made a big “mistake” by
approving open enrollment of all veterans. Buyer noted that
he himself had gone along with this plan.
Buyer recalled that the Congressional Budget Office had
warned of a looming mismatch between demand and resources,
but the
committee leaders and veterans groups “mocked” the
predictions, believing costs would be kept within bounds
by new efficiencies, co-payments charged to some veterans,
and
reimbursements from employer health insurance plans. None
materialized, said Buyer.
Priority 7 and 8 veterans, those with no service-related
disabilities, cost the VA $2 billion last year, about 10
percent of overall
costs. Rather than admit open enrollment was a mistake, the
task force and veterans group now argue, said Buyer, “just
give us more money.”
— Tom Philpott |
DOD OKs V-22 Osprey Production
The V-22 tilt-rotor is ready to shift into high gear, senior
defense officials say.
Pentagon acquisition chief Edward C. Aldridge, who reviewed
the program before retiring May 23, said the redesigned program
has met all key performance parameters and reliability and
maintainability standards. He declared the V-22 program sufficient
to increase production “above the minimum sustaining
rate.”
Following two deadly crashes in 2000 that killed 23 Marines,
the Osprey had design defects corrected and validated through
intense flight tests and inspections, according to V-22 program
manager Marine Corps Col. Dan Schultz.
Schultz told reporters June 19 that, for the past six years,
the program has been at a minimum sustaining rate—11
aircraft per year—the lowest number manufacturer Bell
Boeing can build per year and keep the production line open.
The program office is evaluating five different options
for increasing the production rate, beginning in Fiscal 2005,
Schultz said. Currently, the Pentagon’s long-range spending
plan calls for 11 tilt-rotors to be built in 2005, then 20
in 2006.
Aldridge said production will likely increase to “14
to 15” aircraft in 2005, based on “what’s
affordable” within
the 2005 budget. He also directed officials to “define
options” for enhanced capabilities by adding the Joint
Tactical Radio System and Link 16 for improved communications.
Schultz said there is always money to be found in budgets
for “great
ideas,” but there are no guarantees that funding will
be made available in Fiscal 2005.
The V-22 is expected to replace a host of legacy helicopters,
including Air Force Special Operations Command’s MH-53
Pave Lows.
Schultz noted that AFSOC-specific testing also has been
progressing well. |
Strom Thurmond, 1902-2003
Strom Thurmond of South Carolina—the longest serving
Senator in US history—died June 26 in Edgefield, S.C.
He was 100.
He was born on Dec. 5, 1902, in Edgefield. After graduating
from Clemson College in 1923, he became a teacher and, later,
county school superintendent. He studied law and was admitted
to the bar in 1930. He was elected a state senator in 1933,
then pushed for fellow legislators to name him a circuit judge
in 1938.
In 1941, Thurmond joined the Army as a captain in a civil
affairs unit. On D-Day in 1944, as a lieutenant colonel,
he landed
in France by glider and captured German soldiers with a pistol.
He received a Bronze Star for valor and the French Croix de
Guerre.
He was elected governor of South Carolina in 1946. Thurmond
went to the Senate in 1954 after winning the election as a
write-in candidate—the only Senator to ever win by write-in
vote. During most of his tenure, he served on the Armed Services
Committee, becoming chairman in 1995. He retired from the Senate
in January, after 48 years in office.
Shortly before he left office, the Air Force named a C-17
airlifter Spirit of Strom Thurmond to honor his many
years of support
for the armed forces. |
Robert Stump, 1927-2003
Robert L. Stump, who served in the House of Representatives
for 26 years, died June 20 in Phoenix of a blood disorder.
He was 76.
Stump, who was born April 4, 1927, in Phoenix, retired
from Congress in January. He had been chairman of both
the Veterans’ Affairs
Committee and Armed Services Committee.
He served as a combat medic in the Navy during World War
II. In 1951, he graduated from Arizona State University with
a
degree in agronomy. Stump was elected to the Arizona state
House of Representatives in 1959, where he remained until
1967, when he was elected a state senator. He was elected
to Congress
in 1976.
Stump routinely supported spending increases for military
forces and veterans. During three terms as Veterans’ Affairs
chairman, he pushed for improved health benefits. |
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