"BUFDRVR" wrote

Congress is leaning on the Air Force to get their (our) butts in gear. Congress
is pushing this not to shorten the projected BUFF lifespan (projected to 2038,
beyond the B-1B), but simply to get the Air Force moving. Between 2018 and 2038
we will retire 97% of our existing bombers, I think congress is concerned that
the Air Force will be forced into "crisis acquisition" if they (us) don't get
moving *now*.

I'd like to see two future bombers. The first would be a long range bomber that
never crosses the FEBA (stand-off) and just drops cruise missiles from the Med,
Sea of China, etc. I picture a C-17 derivative.

The second bomber should be stealthy, and able to loiter. This bomber will do
what the B-1, B-2, and B-52 do now (at least those that cross the FEBA). It
should have a C-17 cockpit design, with the addition of a receive-only JTIDS
terminal. Probably a B-2 radar to do bombing under heavy ECM.

I don't think the B-2 is going to last another 10 years. It is already falling apart,
and Northrop-Grumman is basically re-manufacturing them on a monthly basis.
The USAF who is supposed to be maintaining it, are basically unable to keep-up
with the non-TO engineering changes.

"All I want to know, is why are the prisoners at Gitmo still alive?"--Dick Cheney