DOD defers F-22 funding to Obama administration
The Defense Department has deferred spending $140 million of the authorized funding for the F-22 Raptor fighter program, leaving the decision on the program to the incoming administration. Undersecretary of Defense for Aquisition, Technology and Logistics John J. Young told the House Armed Services Committee on November 19 that he had approved only $50 million on the program, for advance procurement of four F-22s.
The Defense Department has deferred spending $140 million of the authorized funding for the F-22 Raptor fighter program, leaving the decision on the program to the incoming administration.
Undersecretary of Defense for Aquisition, Technology and Logistics John J. Young told the House Armed Services Committee on November 19 that he had approved only $50 million on the program, for advance procurement of four F-22s. DOD will include the purchase of the aircraft in its second fiscal 2009 supplemental budget request, he told the committee.
The purchase of 16 additional aircraft is being delayed, Young said, so that the Obama administration can make the decision on whether to cut the funding. "The department is acting responsibly, consistent with [Defense Secretary Robert Gates'] commitment and congressional direction, seeking to ensure that each tax dollar is used carefully and efficiently," he told the committee.
The purchase of the four Raptor aircraft is a bridge to keep the Obama administration's options with the F-22 program open, said Young. The 2009 National Defense Authorization Act allows for the advance purchase of 20 F-22 fighters up until March. However, if the Obama administration delays the decision past the end of January, the pricetag of the additional aircraft could increase.
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