Budget Woes May Force Navy to Shutter Two Carrier Air Wings
TOPICS:carrier air wingsCongresscontinuing resolutionDefense BudgetNavy
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Aircraft from Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 17 conduct flight operations aboard the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt on Jan. 20, 2017. Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Bill M. Sanders/Navy
Posted By: Hope Hodge Seck February 9, 2017
If the Pentagon must contend with a year-long continuing resolution that keeps funding levels flat — or if Congress can’t pass a supplemental defense budget this fiscal year — two of the Navy’s 10 carrier air wings will go dark, and two more will be reduced to bare minimum capacity, the service’s number two officer told lawmakers Wednesday.
At a hearing of the Senate Armed Services Committee’s subcommittee on readiness, the service vice chiefs urged the panel to fund force strength increases and warned of the dire consequences of leaving sequestration budget cuts in place.
Adm. Bill Moran, vice chief of naval operations, said the impact for the Navy would be immediate: Two carrier air wings would cease operations entirely, and two would operate at that “tactical hard deck” of 11 flight hours per pilot per month, the minimum allowable for safety.
https://www.dodbuzz.com/2017/02/09/budget-woes-may-force-navy-shutter-two-carrier-air-wings/
