- A new U.S. government report warns over the last nine years, few of the Pentagon’s aircraft were ready at least 80 percent of the time.
- Only two out of 46 aircraft types were “mission capable” for the majority of the last nine years.
- One bright spot? The Pentagon’s F-35 fleet, including Air Force F-35As, Marine Corps F-35Bs, and Navy F-35Cs, are generally improving in mission availability.
A new report from the U.S. Government Accountability Office slams the readiness rate of U.S. military warplanes, revealing that hardly any of them were able to maintain a consistently high level of “mission capable” aircraft over the last nine years.
The F-22 Raptor fleet was 80 percent mission capable zero out of nine years.KARIM SAHIBGETTY IMAGES
The report graded the 46 aircraft types on their ability to maintain a mission-capable level of at least 80 percent—that is, the ability of each type to have at least 80 percent of its aircraft capable of performing at least one of its assigned missions. For example, the F-22 Raptor fleet […]
I am an old Vietnam-era vet who avoided the draft by joining the USAF becoming a maintenance tech of a 1-megaton cruise missile then carried by the B-52. So much for humble bona fides of a low ranking nobody but I am happy that the Pentagon has been threatened with a slight problem with funding. Such a money-pit has never before been invented by human civilization with no accounting for how it has been spent. Now they can come up with data that shows inadequate funding to maintain/repair the huge air fleet.
This damned arrogant empire should and must end let it start with starving the beast which will be very difficult as can be seen by recent events. Congress suddenly shows independence from dear leader giving him his first veto can’t disrupt our killing machine.