Leenn087--Without more money, B-2 could be grounded

Without more money, B-2 could be grounded

By Erik Holmes - Staff writer
Posted : Friday Feb 15, 2008 17:10:07 EST
   
Aging displays in the B-2 fleet could force the Air Force to ground one of the stealthy bombers by the end of fiscal 2009 unless Congress ponies up money for upgrades.

The service requested $71.7 million for B-2 upgrades in its unfunded priority list submitted to Congress Feb. 8. The “wish list” includes items the Air Force says it needs but could not fit into its 2009 budget proposal.

A portion of the requested money would pay to replace obsolete displays, according to the wish list document.

Air Force spokeswoman Vicki Stein said the service’s supply of spare displays will run out by the end of fiscal 2009, and the number of displays available will only be enough to upgrade 20 of the 21 B-2s.

But even if the money is not provided, she said, grounding one of the aircraft will not hurt the Air Force’s strategic capability.

“This represents no risk to … global strike capabilities,” Stein said in an e-mail.

“While the projected shortage of displays will cause a small increase in maintenance workload, it will not impact the ability of the B-2 fleet to fulfill its wartime commitment.”

The 2009 budget request includes $330.4 million for B-2 modifications, including $300.4 million to modernize the aircraft’s radar.

The B-2 is the most expensive aircraft in Air Force history, costing $1.2 billion apiece, according to an Air Force fact sheet.
美空军公布B-2轰炸机升级计划

    由于机载显示器的老化，美空军将在2009财年对B-2轰炸机进行改造，但由于资金和备份显示器的不足将导致一架该型机在2009财年底停飞。目前，美空军现存的备份显示器只够用到2009财年底，而且可用的显示器仅够对21架B-2轰炸机中的20架升级。为此，美空军在无财政预算计划中申请7170万美元对该型轰炸机显示器进行升级，因为此项资金无法被列入2009年财年预算中进行申请。美空军官员表示，即使停飞一架该型机，不会对美空军的战略打击能力造成影响。根据2009财年预算计划，美空军将投入3.304亿美元对B-2轰炸机进行改造，其中3.004亿美元用于升级其作战雷达系统。Without more money, B-2 could be grounded

By Erik Holmes - Staff writer
Posted : Friday Feb 15, 2008 17:10:07 EST
   
Aging displays in the B-2 fleet could force the Air Force to ground one of the stealthy bombers by the end of fiscal 2009 unless Congress ponies up money for upgrades.

The service requested $71.7 million for B-2 upgrades in its unfunded priority list submitted to Congress Feb. 8. The “wish list” includes items the Air Force says it needs but could not fit into its 2009 budget proposal.

A portion of the requested money would pay to replace obsolete displays, according to the wish list document.

Air Force spokeswoman Vicki Stein said the service’s supply of spare displays will run out by the end of fiscal 2009, and the number of displays available will only be enough to upgrade 20 of the 21 B-2s.

But even if the money is not provided, she said, grounding one of the aircraft will not hurt the Air Force’s strategic capability.

“This represents no risk to … global strike capabilities,” Stein said in an e-mail.

“While the projected shortage of displays will cause a small increase in maintenance workload, it will not impact the ability of the B-2 fleet to fulfill its wartime commitment.”

The 2009 budget request includes $330.4 million for B-2 modifications, including $300.4 million to modernize the aircraft’s radar.

The B-2 is the most expensive aircraft in Air Force history, costing $1.2 billion apiece, according to an Air Force fact sheet.
美空军公布B-2轰炸机升级计划

    由于机载显示器的老化，美空军将在2009财年对B-2轰炸机进行改造，但由于资金和备份显示器的不足将导致一架该型机在2009财年底停飞。目前，美空军现存的备份显示器只够用到2009财年底，而且可用的显示器仅够对21架B-2轰炸机中的20架升级。为此，美空军在无财政预算计划中申请7170万美元对该型轰炸机显示器进行升级，因为此项资金无法被列入2009年财年预算中进行申请。美空军官员表示，即使停飞一架该型机，不会对美空军的战略打击能力造成影响。根据2009财年预算计划，美空军将投入3.304亿美元对B-2轰炸机进行改造，其中3.004亿美元用于升级其作战雷达系统。