Article

2015-03-28 Home Front: WoT

Twenty percent of USMC aircraft are grounded

Nearly one of every five of the Corps' aircraft are unable to fly, making it difficult for Marines to train for deployments, the service's top aviator said.

Lt. Gen. Jon Davis, the deputy commandant of the Marine Corps for Aviation, testified before the Senate Armed Services Subcommittee on Seapower on Wednesday. He detailed the effect across-the-board spending cuts have had on Marine aviation, alongside to Navy admirals.

The shortfall spans across aircraft in the fleet, and it is largely caused by a backlog of aircraft stuck in depots for extensive work and overhauls. The problems date back to the 2013 defense budget cuts.

Davis said the problem in the Corps is most prevalent with F/A-18 Hornets, but also impacts CH-53E Super Stallions, AV-8B Harriers, MV-22B Ospreys, and H-1 Hueys.

Across the Navy and Marine Corps, the strike-fighter shortfall could reach as high as 134 aircraft. The gap is caused by a service life extension program that has caused a backlog of Hornets in short-staffed maintenance depots, Vice Adm. Paul Grosklags, the principal military deputy assistant secretary of the Navy for research, development and acquisitions, said.

Legacy Hornets were brought into depots to extend their service life from 6,000 flight hours to as long as 10,000 in order to keep them operational until the F-35B Joint Strike Fighter entered the fleet. The Hornets were only designed to last to 6,000 hours, and when engineers opened up the airframe to extend their service life, they found unexpected levels of corrosion that required extensive work.

Besides the additional work in depots, sequestration left depots understaffed, Grosklags said. Depots should have 6,800 artisans and engineers, but the workforce is short 700 artisans, with the most acute gap in the Hornet community.

Sequestration also made it tough to buy spare parts for aircraft, so even aircraft that are in the fleet sometimes can't fly, Davis said.

Posted by Pappy 2015-03-28 00:00|| || Front Page|| [11135 views ] Top

#1 Thanks, Obama!

Posted by Raj 2015-03-28 00:40|| 2015-03-28 00:40|| Front Page Top

#2 US-LED ANTI-US OWG GLOBALISM + BUDGET, ECON WOES + "QUANTITAIVE EASING/QE" = iff a KSA-vs-Iran = China-vs-Japan War ever broke out, THE USMC + USDOD IN GENERAL WILL BE FIGHTING UNDER CONSTRAINTS OF SERIOUS TO NEAR-CATASTROPHIC MATERIEL + MANPOWER, ETC. NATIONAL SHORTAGES AND WARFIGHTING DEFICIENCIES.

A "1-1-1/2" REGIONAL WAR [Police Actions], NO LONGER A "2-2-1/2" OCEAN WAR.

It won't be your Father's, Grandfather's, or Great-Father's War = Program of Limited-vs-Full National Mobilization - DEM BE THE GOOD OLE' DAYS.

As Globalist Amerika PCorrectly self-retreats around the World, lucky iff the USDOD even has a "1/2" in their MilPlanning.

Posted by JosephMendiola 2015-03-28 01:32|| 2015-03-28 01:32|| Front Page Top

#3 Hopefully there is a 20 percent corresponding reduction in notoriously high USMC aviation accident reporting.

Posted by Besoeker 2015-03-28 07:52|| 2015-03-28 07:52|| Front Page Top

#4 Probably not. Accidents increase with a decrease in aviator flying time. It gets worse when one engages in maneuvers like nap-of-the-earth close air support.

Posted by Pappy 2015-03-28 08:50|| 2015-03-28 08:50|| Front Page Top

#5 Fewer planes, fewer flying hour opportunities and reduced training. Makes sense.

Posted by Besoeker 2015-03-28 08:55|| 2015-03-28 08:55|| Front Page Top

#6 Another bambi/carter parallel: saw much the same when peanut boy was prez. What isn't mentioned is that OPTEMPO doesn't go down so the maintainers are cannibilizing the down birds to make the flight schedule.

Posted by USN, Ret. 2015-03-28 10:07|| 2015-03-28 10:07|| Front Page Top

#7 Also 'contract' hours get cut back as you've moved more and more uniform duties/functions to contractors like maintenance and PLL management.

Posted by Procopius2k 2015-03-28 10:14|| 2015-03-28 10:14|| Front Page Top

#8 If the US was invaded by someone, I honestly believe Tyrant Obama would order the military not to fight.

Posted by Silentbrick 2015-03-28 10:22|| 2015-03-28 10:22|| Front Page Top

#9 Accidents will increase when the aircraft start to filter back. Front line pilots will be ok but the ones that are staff pilots will need to get back up tactically. This will raise the risk level in training flights. Second point is the aircraft that are flying right now are accelerating toward overhaul at a faster pace. I'm sure they are consuming twice the maintenance efforts to keep them up as well.

Posted by 49 Pan 2015-03-28 12:35|| 2015-03-28 12:35|| Front Page Top

#10 @#8: If?

Posted by Hupineger Glomomp52169 2015-03-28 13:53|| 2015-03-28 13:53|| Front Page Top

03:23 Besoeker
02:05 Grom the Affective
02:04 Grom the Affective
01:26 49 Pan
00:22 EMS Artifact
00:16 Skidmark