Aerospace World By Suzann Chapman, Managing Editor ACC Begins F/A-22 Operations Air Combat Command’s Air War- fare Center, Nellis AFB, Nev., re- Air Force Restructures F/A-22, Full Buy Still Expected ceived its first F/A-22 Raptor Jan. 14. The Air Force in late December moved to slow the F/A-22 Raptor (See photo this page.) The center will fighter airplane project in a way that will shift program costs to the early have 17 of the new stealth fighters by airplanes and streamline the test program. 2009. Air Force Secretary James G. Roche told Air Force Magazine last Over the next year, the Air Force’s month that the service still expects to build all 339 of the planned F/A-22s initial cadre of F/A-22 pilots, main- and maybe more. tainers, and support personnel will Service officials last November had revealed a potential cost overrun receive their training at Nellis. The of about $690 million. In early December, following an investigation, the base has added additional operations Air Force revised that number to between $700 million and $1 billion. space, a parts store, maintenance (See “Aerospace World: F/A-22 Development Cost Issue Grows,” Janu- hangar, and, to handle the fighter’s ary, p. 9.) At the time, USAF leaders predicted they would need to cut the stealth materials, a corrosion con- planned purchases by about six aircraft. trol/composite repair facility. For bookkeeping purposes, however, the Air Force set a new goal of Additionally, Air Education and 276 airplanes. Roche said this figure will be revisited almost annually. Training Command established an A new maximum rate of F/A-22 production was set at 36 per year, but F/A-22 maintenance training facility that rate may not be reached until 2009. on the base. Cost of early production aircraft shot up when Defense Secretary Seven F/A-22 Raptors, due in over Donald H. Rumsfeld last spring ordered an evaluation of the ramifica- this year and next and bound for tions of reducing the F/A-22 fleet to 180 airplanes. (See “The F-22 On the Nellis, will go to the 53rd Wing’s 422nd Line,” September 2002, p. 36.) Although only an intellectual exercise to Test and Evaluation Squadron, which consider options, the study prompted F/A-22 subcontractors to demand will assist in operational testing and faster paybacks on their investments in the program. development of combat tactics. An- New program and test leadership has been assigned to focus on other nine, due between 2008–09, getting the F/A-22 fielded on time, beginning in late 2005. will go to the 57th Wing for the USAF Weapons School. All F/A-22s at Nel- —John A. Tirpak lis will be maintained by the 57th Wing. USAF Deploys B-2 Shelters The Air Force announced in early January that it had erected two of the B-2 stealth bomber transportable hangar systems overseas. It would not officially state the location. The shelters enable the service to forward deploy its B-2 bombers, greatly reducing mission length. For Opera- USAF photo by SrA. Kenny Kennemer tion Enduring Freedom missions in Afghanistan, the B-2 crews flew mis- sions as long as 44 hours from their home base at Whiteman AFB, Mo. Twenty members of the 49th Mate- riel Maintenance Squadron, Hollo- man AFB, N.M., spent 70 days work- ing 12-hour shifts to set up the B-2 shelters. The handpicked team fin- ished about three weeks ahead of schedule, according to Lt. Col. Myron Majors, 49th MMS commander. Some of the team members had worked Lt. Col. David Rose touches down Jan. 14 at Nellis AFB, Nev., in the first of with the shelters during testing. nine F/A-22 stealth fighters destined for the Air Combat Command warfare The shelters are about two football tactics base. Rose is chief of the Nellis F/A-22 integration office and ACC’s first fields long, are climate controlled, Raptor pilot. (See “ACC Begins F/A-22 Operations,” this page.) 10 AIR FORCE Magazine / February 2003 and can withstand extremes in tem- perature and wind. They enable the Combat Controller Receives Posthumous Honor service to maintain the stealth char- acteristics of the B-2. Air Force officials said in late Octo- The Air Force posthumously awarded the Air Force Cross to TSgt. John Chapman, a combat controller assigned to the 24th Special Tactics Squad- ber that they were prepared to for- ron, Pope AFB, N.C. The award ceremony took place at Pope on Jan. 10. ward deploy the bombers. Plans an- Chapman was killed in Afghanistan on March 4, 2002, during a firefight with nounced then called for four shelters al Qaeda and Taliban forces as he helped save the lives of his team. at the British–owned Indian Ocean The Air Force Cross is USAF’s highest award for valor and, overall, is island Diego Garcia and one at RAF second only to the Medal of Honor, which Congress must approve. Fairford, UK. The service had already Chapman was one of two Air Force members killed during Operation established a special B-2 hangar at Anaconda. The other, SrA. Jason D. Cunningham, a pararescue jumper Andersen AFB, Guam. with the 38th Rescue Squadron, Moody AFB, Ga., also received an Air Force Cross posthumously at a ceremony last fall. (See “Aerospace World: Bush OKs Military Pay Raise Air Force Posthumously Honors Pararescueman,” October 2002, p. 11.) President Bush in early January As an Army helicopter inserted Chapman and his teammates into Af- rejected a proposal by the Office of ghanistan in the early hours of Anaconda, it came under heavy machine Management and Budget to impose gun fire. It was directly hit by a rocket-propelled grenade, which caused one a military pay raise cap for the Fiscal member, Navy SEAL Petty Officer 1st Class Neil C. Roberts, to fall from the 2004 budget. The raise to take effect aircraft. The helicopter was severely damaged, and the pilot made an in January 2004 will be an average of emergency landing about four miles from where Roberts fell. 4.1 percent, as proposed by Penta- Chapman called in an AC-130 gunship to provide close air support and gon leaders, instead of the two per- cover the stranded team, then directed the gunship to search for Roberts. cent OMB recommended. Next, Chapman called for an evacuation helicopter. He volunteered to Congress mandated a military pay rescue Roberts and engaged and killed two enemy personnel in the raise formula beginning in 1999 and attempt. running through 2006 to provide a The award citation said the following: “He continued to advance, reach- minimum raise that is greater by a ing the enemy position, then engaged a second enemy position, a dug-in 0.5 percentage point than the previ- machine gun nest. At this time the rescue team came under effective ous year’s average private sector enemy fire from three directions. From close range Sergeant Chapman salary increase. exchanged fire with the enemy from minimum personal cover until he Pentagon leaders proposed for the succumbed to multiple wounds.” fourth year straight to target certain The citation continued: “His engagement and destruction of the first ranks for higher increases. Studies enemy position and advancement on the second enemy position enabled have shown that midgrade and se- his team to move to cover and break enemy contact.” nior enlisted troops are underpaid Air Force Secretary James G. Roche said at the ceremony that Chapman compared to the private sector, while was an “American’s American.” Chapman left the University of Connecticut to join the Air Force in 1985. junior enlisted and junior officer pay He first served in the information systems field, then, in 1989, began is actually somewhat better. There- combat controller training at Lackland AFB, Tex. At Pope, Chapman was fore, the raises will range from 3.2 known for his skill as a radio communicator, aircraft landing zone controller, percent to more than six percent, combat search and rescue specialist, air traffic controller, free-fall para- except for new recruits, who will get chutist, and military scuba-diving instructor. a two percent boost. Gen. John P. Jumper, Chief of Staff, presented the Air Force Cross to Congress still has to approve the Chapman’s widow, Valerie, and to his parents, Terry Giaccone and Gene pay raise as part of the 2004 Penta- Chapman. gon budget. Lawmakers approved an across-the-board 4.1 percent increase and more for certain ranks, in the Fiscal 2003 legislation passed late last year. “On paper, the Air Force did meet sive, least able to fly” aerial refuel- its goals,” said Maj. Gen. Peter U. ers, according to the Seattle Post– Stop-Loss Inflates Retention Sutton, USAF’s director of learning Intelligencer. Such a move will put USAF revealed in mid–December and force development. However, he even more stress on an already over- that the Fiscal 2002 enlisted reten- added, “The reality is that there is worked fleet but could spur decision- tion numbers released last fall were still a retention challenge.” makers. inaccurate. The high numbers simply The high numbers could send the Details of the retirement are to be reflected the effects of Stop-Loss. wrong message to airmen and com- revealed this month in the Fiscal 2004 The Air Force implemented Stop- manders, said Sutton. Pentagon budget. Loss, following the 9/11 terrorist at- In mid–November the Air Force and tacks, to prevent service personnel Tanker Lease Still On Hold Boeing reportedly had reached an from retiring or separating.