the Big Mattress - Freeform Interactive Radio on the Net

so....the total cost, estimated, for building all that they have projected is twenty four billion three hundred thirty nine million dollars!!!!
TAKE THE CHECKBOOK AWAY FROM THE BITCH!!!

"It's better to have and don't need than to need and don't have".
Don Covay

I think that Gates has canceled the balance of the contract..........no more F22's.
eft

Two things:
First there is what is called Non recurring engineering costs. Which is the cost to develop technology that doesn't exist presently. This is not cheap but is what gives us the overwhelming advantage. The NRE is a set price that is what it is. The per plane cost to build the planes is fairly cheap but the NRE has to be added into the cost of each plane. That is why they wanted 683 plane. That way the per plane cost is comparable to that of an F15. When congress cuts 500 planes from the program the price become ridiculous and the program gets cancelled! But guess what you already spent the NRE by that time and what to you have to show for it, nothing!!!! So basically you pissed away 100 billion.

Second, the life of you basic electronic chip is 5-10 years. It gets to a point where it is just not feasible to keep them running anymore but guess what you now have nothing to replace them with and now it is going to take 10 years before you can develop something else. They have extended the service life of the B52 to 90 years!!!! That is like keeping the Wright brothers plane still in service. The average M16 in service right now is 30 yo the average soldier is 20.

So yes the military needs to quit over specifying, but congress has to pull their heads out of their asses stick to their commitments and quit pissing away money we don't have.

So how do you explain the B-52 still being an important part of our bomber fleet 60 plus years later? The F-117 Stealth was considered a boondogle. That was till it flew it's first missions in Bosnia and Iraq. Do you really want to bring a knife to a gun fight? Believe Me there will be Air Combat in the not to distant future. We may not have as many planes as the Soviets who are currently rebuilding there military with oil revenue and the Chi-Coms have all the do re mi so as duane would say, "do the Math". I hight tech plane like this could close the gap with technology not numbers.

For once I agree with Danny!