ths@lanl-a.UUCP (10/20/84)
The comment about replacing the B-52 with a modified commercial aircraft would seem to have some merit, especially when you look at the current condition of the B-52 fleet and the restriction being placed on them. I recall during the early seventies the same logic was applied to the C-5. It was costing three times what a 747 cost. Congress wanted at least a portion of the MAC fleet to consist of 747's. Unfortunately the military "proved" to Congress that the 747 was an unworthy substitute. Noting the 747's inability to use "unprepared" fields and the like. One congressman noted that in a conbat situation it might still be more cost effective to land the 747 "in the rough" and just leave them there. I just have a hard time believing that we can't come up with a suitable "basic bomber" type for the mission now being handled by the B-52 for considerably less than "one billion per copy". I have also gone through a few B-52 cockpits in the past few years and was really dissappointed to see the condition of these aircraft. the last one I was in was just last year. The instrument panel had been modified many time over to accept newer avionics and flight instrumentation. Large holes, loose wiring and makeshift brackets gave me the impression that I would have second thoughts taking the plane into the air, much less into combat. The cost of the B-1 program, even recognizing the immediate need for a B-52 replacement, does not seem justified. It is important to note that we are not getting a "fleet" of B-1s. Something in the neighborhood of 100 planes is it. How long will it take for attrition to move that number to the point where we will be looking for "another" replacement. Will the B-1 still be able to serve 30 years from now! I remember visiting General Dynamics Fort Worth in 1967. I was told that they still had the tooling for the B-24 "out back". Wonder if they could put a few of those togeather......
medin@ucbvax.ARPA (Milo Medin) (10/22/84)
Well, that number 100 planes is heavily dependent on stealth coming in on schedule and on target. I have a feeling that its going to be late and underperformance. Then we'll see how many B-1's are produced. Milo