Secretary Of Defence Cites Numerous Delays In The Program
Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates on Thursday announced a
series of efficiencies decisions designed to save the Department of
Defense more than $150 billion over the next five years primarily
by reducing overhead costs, improving business practices and
culling excess or troubled programs. Most of the resulting
savings will be used by the Army, Navy, Marine Corps and Air Force
to invest in high priority programs that strengthen warfighting
capabilities.
Defense Secretary Robert Gates
In anticipation of an era of modest defense budget growth, Gates
launched a comprehensive effort last May to reduce the
Department’s overhead expenditures. The goal was to
sustain the military’s size and strength over the long term
by reinvesting those efficiency savings in force structure and
other key combat capabilities. Specifically, the military
services were directed to find at least $100 billion in savings
that they could keep and shift to higher priority programs.
To achieve the savings targets, service leadership conducted a
thorough and vigorous scrub of bureaucratic structures, facilities,
programs, business practices, civilian and military personnel
levels, and associated overhead costs.
Among those "troubled programs" is the STOVL variant of the F-35
Joint Strike Fighter. Gates placed the Marine Corps’
short take-off and vertical landing (STOVL) variant of the JSF on
the equivalent of a two-year probation because of significant
testing problems. As a result, the development of the Marine
variant will be moved to the back of the overall JSF production
sequence. To fill the gap created from the slip in the JSF
production schedule, the Department of the Navy will buy more Navy
F/A-18s, and extend the service life of 150 additional Hornets. The
Navy also plans to develop a new generation of sea-borne unmanned
strike and surveillance aircraft as a cost-savings measure.
STOVL F-35
The Air Force plans to consolidating two air operations centers
in the United States and two in Europe, consolidating three
numbered Air Force staffs, save $500 million by reducing fuel and
energy consumption within the Air Mobility Command, improving depot
and supply chain business processes to sustain weapons systems,
thus improving readiness at lower cost, and reduce the cost of
communications infrastructure by 25 percent, all for a savings of
some $34 billion over five years. Some of those savings will be
spent on additional Reaper UAV systems, as well as the development
of a new long range, nuclear-capable penetrating bomber designed
using proven technologies. Air Force officials say that approach
should make it possible to deliver this capability on schedule and
in quantity.
“While America is at war and confronts a range of
future security threats, it is important to not repeat the mistakes
of the past by making drastic and ill-conceived cuts to the overall
defense budget," Gates said. "At the same time, it is
imperative for this Department to eliminate wasteful, excessive,
and unneeded spending. Indeed, to do everything we can to
make every defense dollar count.”
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