--
And by the way, Mr. Speaker, The Second Amendment is not for killing
ducks and leaving Huey and Dewey and Louie without an aunt and uncle. It
is for hunting politicians like in Grozney and in 1776, when they take
your independence away".

Robert K. Dornen, U.S. Congressman. 1995
"Michael Petukhov" wrote in message
om...
"Bill Silvey" wrote in message
. com...
"Michael Petukhov" wrote in message
om
http://www.spiegel.de/spiegel/englis...265466,00.html

"A Bottomless Pit"

Armaments: The Eurofighter is turning into a nightmare. According to a
report by the Federal Audit Office, the mega project will not only
cost five billion euros more than planned - it also suffers from
severe flaws. Defence minister Peter Struck's budget is not big enough
to continue to maintain an army of 285,000 with modern equipment at
its disposal. In particular, the minister wants to economise on arms.
The room for manoeuvring available to army planners is minimal. To the
intense annoyance of the army and navy, more than two thirds of the
money is earmarked for aeronautical equipment: helicopters, Airbus
transport aircraft and in particular the airforce's controversial
Eurofighter. But the first Eurofighters, which are now being delivered
considerably behind schedule, are virtually useless.

It is an interesting contrast between modern, industrialized societies'
weapons procurement versus Eastern Bloc nations' command economy

Wrong. If you read the arcticle in full you would learn that
8 EF2000 just arrived to German airforce have huge number of
purely technical problems which according to that report
make them "useless" as combat aircraft. Given the cost paid
rather the story proves inefficiency of industrialized societies'
weapons procurement versus Eastern Bloc nations' command economy.

and the
diktat that forced various industries therein to essentially create and
perform with little or no regard to reward or payment; surely if files
covering all Soviet aircraft developments

All this is certanly contrary to very vell known facts that
soviet command economy was more cost effective in arms production
than US market economy was.

(and currently, that's all Russia
has to fly beyond a few never-never technology demonstrators)

dispite the obvious fact that 100s of Su-27, Mig-29, Mig-31, Tu22Ms
and Tu160 are newer and more than enough match to their US opponents
F16, F15, B1 abd B2. That's why. Was it you who was just complaining
about cost inefficiacy of soviet command economy?



And your ships are better and your subs more advanced and you won the cold
war and put down your crack pipe...