Navy Struggles With 'Fighter Gap'

Tiger wrote:

:Fred J. McCall wrote:
: wrote:
:
: :See:
: :
: :http://defensenews.com/story.php?i=3466832&c=FEA&s=CVS
: :
: :
: :What should the Navy do? Buy more F/A-18's? Speed up JSF
: rocurement?
: :
: :Or something else?
: :
:
: My personal opinion? Buy more Hornets and cut the F-35C buy in half.
: Super Hornets are cheaper than JSF (can probably buy at least 2
: Superbugs per JSF), more capable now than F-35C will be when it
: fields, and are available NOW. You wind up with equal or greater
: capability earlier for less money.
:
: Looking at the difference in price, I'd bet USMC is wishing it had
: some replacement alternative for AV-8B other than F-35B. I don't see
: how they afford the number of replacement airframes (320) they want
: given the price tag of the things. I have to wonder what it would
: cost to have Boeing restart the AV-8B production line and start
: cranking out updated AV-8's and how much before F-35B they'd be
: available.
:
:
:REstart a Line? IN this economy, not going to happen.
:

It could if it turns out to be cheaper than buying F-35B by a good
bit.

:
:Big $$$ for short term work = DOA.
:

What 'short term'? We're not talking about significantly fewer
aircraft than they built the first time around.

:
:Besides Boeing Has other military contracts to fill. A
:P-8, There half of the V-22, Perhaps a Tanker, Not to mention upgrades
n current planes or Fixing the F15 problem.
:

And of those all, only the F-15 is even built at the same facility.
Why do you think there will be money for an F-15 problem fix? This is
MUCH more 'short term work' than restarting a line and building new
aircraft.

--
"Ignorance is preferable to error, and he is less remote from the
truth who believes nothing than he who believes what is wrong."
-- Thomas Jefferson