Welsh: B-52 Not Maintained by Choice

Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Welsh joined the three other service chiefs and all four military secretaries yesterday in pushing to the full House Armed Services Committee the military’s case to bust the Budget Control Act caps, specifically highlighting obsolete nuclear infrastructure and an aging bomber fleet. “We don’t have the B-52 in the inventory by choice,” Welsh said in response to a question by Rep. Martha McSally (R-Ariz.) during yesterday’s hearing. “If you’ll recall the B-2 was supposed to replace a large part of that fleet, but that buy was stopped at 20 aircraft. So that’s why we’re building a long-range strike bomber now, because we need 80 to 100 bombers.”

 

McSally asked why the service is allowing the 50-year-old B-52 to fly while it plans to retire the A-10. Welsh said budget concerns drove the A-10 proposal, and added that the B-52 and B-1 could augment the close air support of fighters after the A-10 stops flying. The Pentagon has proposed to retire the A-10 in recent years, contrary to Congressional actions which have kept the plane in service. B-52s are currently undergoing upgrades, including modernization of their satellite communications and data-link systems—a program known as Combat Network Communications Technology, or CONECT.