The 40-Year Plan

February 21, 2008— As we’ve reported before, the Air Force plan to replace its elderly KC-135 tanker fleet comprises three increments: KC-X, followed by Y and Z, with each representing about one-third of the overall buy of some 479 aircraft. The service expects to make a contract award announcement early next week for the KC-X portion, giving the total contract for 179 tankers to either Boeing or the Northrop Grumman-EADS team. The entire replacement program would extend to 2051 at the expected rate of purchase of only up to 18 aircraft per year.

Verbatim

Instill Value
“When you get down to our airmen, they are not looking for praise, glory, and accolades. But they are looking for value—value in them as human beings. And to do that, we have to put value in the mission. When the nation, at the leadership level and every American’s level, places value in the mission, they will put value in the people. And that is what I find important to the airmen inside of the world that I live in.”
—Gen. John Corley, commander of Air Combat Command, during a four-star forum at AFA’s Air & Space Conference, Washington, D.C., Sept. 17, 2008.

Verbatim

What Does the Nation Expect?
"The question for us is, ‘Should a force that is extremely relevant and in very high demand in this very difficult environment of the global war on terrorism have airplanes that are 30 or 40 years old?'"
—Lt. Gen. Donald Wurster, head of Air Force Special Operations Command, commenting on the command’s aged fleet of gunships and special-mission airlifters and tankers, during a four-star panel discussion at AFA’s Air & Space Conference, Sept. 17, 2008.