Paul Lewis/WASHINGTON DC
Congress has given the US Navy and US Air Force a green light to negotiate multi-year procurement contracts for 222 Boeing F/A-18E/F fighters and a follow-on batch of 60 Boeing C-17 ster transports, respectively. The go-ahead comes as part of an agreed $17.3 billion increase in defence expenditure for the new financial year.
The US Senate and House appropriation committees have agreed to a $267.7 billion defence budget, $4.5 billion more than originally requested by President Clinton. The bill now being sent to him to sign represents the first increase in annual defence appropriations in 14 years. The budget puts priority on improving pay and conditions, including $110 million to stem the loss of pilots.
Topping the $53 billion equipment procurement budget is $2.7 billion for 36 F/A-18E/Fs in 2000 as part of a five-year contract. US Navy production will rise to 42 in 2001 and to 48 aircraft a year thereafter. Congress has stipulated that the cost of a 222 fighter batch purchase must be at least 7.4% cheaper than if ordered annually.
The USAF has secured $3 billion for 15 more C-17s as part of an approved 120 transport procurement through to 2003. The air force has also been cleared to negotiate a second contract for 60 more aircraft, starting with 10 in 2003, 15 in each of the following three years and five in 2007.
It is unclear what effect a C-17 order will have on the air force's planned $5 billion re-engining of 126 Lockheed C-5A/Bs. Observers suggest the programme could be cut to the 50 most recently built C-5Bs.
Items not requested but funded by Congress include $275 million for five more F-15Es, enabling the production line to re-open, $245 million for another 10 Lockheed Martin F-16C/Ds, $109 million in avionics and weapon upgrades for the Boeing B-52H, B-1B and Northrop Grumman B-2 bombers.
Source: Flight International
