Washington, D.C. -- Chairman Neil Abercrombie and his House Armed Services Subcommittee on Air & Land Forces have completed writing their part of the 2010 National Defense Authorization Act and making tough choices on defense spending involving billions of dollars. The legislation articulates the nation’s defense policy and authorizes all operations of the U.S. Department of Defense.  Abercrombie’s Subcommittee has specific oversight responsibility for the U.S. Army and Air Force. 

 “Our goal,” Abercrombie said, “is to find and fund the proper balance between the immediate needs of today’s armed forces and the needs of tomorrow’s forces to deter or defeat threats to the United States.”

The largest departure from the Pentagon’s request is $603 million for the development of a competitive engine for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. Congress has argued for several years that manufacturing a second engine for the fighter will ultimately save money.

“The F-35 will eventually comprise 90% of the country’s fighter aircraft fleet, for the Air Force, Marine Corps and Navy,”  Abercrombie said.  “We do not believe that it is wise to rely completely on one type of engine, particularly when that engine has already had problems in testing.” 

The Committee supported Abercrombie’s $429-million cut in “termination costs” for the Future Combat Systems (FCS), the Army’s multi-billion dollar plan for a network of manned and unmanned vehicles and aircraft connected by an impenetrable communications system. After a history of delays and cost overruns, the Secretary of Defense has recommended significant reductions in FCS. 

Other parts of the Air and Land Forces bill place heightened emphasis on continued research and development of effective body armor for our troops, and a major increase in funding for National Guard and Reserve equipment. Many Guard and Reserve units have returned from deployments in Iraq without their full complement of military equipment because they were required to leave a great deal behind for the next unit rotating in. Multiple tours over nearly six years have left many units with only a fraction of their assigned vehicles, communication and emergency gear, and unable to fully respond to natural disasters or other emergencies.

The full House Armed Services Committee will consider all six of its Subcommittee’s recommendations tomorrow (June 16th).

-30-