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Navy, Air Force flight stats have been dive bombing for two decades: CBO
The military's decline in flight hours and aircraft availability has remained a hot topic for lawmakers for several years.
By Justin Katz on January 07, 2022 at 12:37 PM
An F/A-18C Hornet, attached to the “Valions” of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 15, launches off of the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush (CVN 77). George H.W. (U.S. Navy photo/Margaret Keith)
WASHINGTON: Aircraft availability and flying hours in the Navy, Marine Corps and Air Force have seen a “marked decline” over the past two decades, with the most eye-catching drop driven by the Navy’s legacy Hornet fleet, a new analysis finds.
“In general, fleetwide availability rates have declined for both services, but they have declined more for [the Department of the Navy]. Average annual flight hours per aircraft have followed a similar trend,” according to a Congressional Budget Office analysis of the services’ aviation statistics since 2001.
“Both the Air Force and DoN experienced declines in the number of flying hours per aircraft and a sharper decline during the pandemic,” the report continues.
https://breakingdefense.com/2022/01/navy-air-force-flight-stats-have-been-dive-bombing-for-two-decades-cbo/
