Hill Staffer Charges Decisions in Washington Degraded Pilot Skills February 28, 2000 Comment: #347 Reference #1 is a trip report that is being distributed widely on Capital Hill, inside the Pentagon, and among defense contractors. It was prepared to document the results of a visit to Fallon Naval Air Station and Nellis Air Force Base by a member of the congressional staff. He charges that the skills of fighter pilots in the AF and Navy are being degraded by the effects of training cutbacks, shortages of instructors, excessive peacetime deployments, aging aircraft, spare parts shortages, shortages of flying hours, and the lack of an aggressor program like that employed in the 1970s and 1980s. He charges that the roots of the problem can be traced to decisions made in Washington, particularly on Capital Hill. [Disclaimer: In accordance with 17 U.S.C. 107, this material is distributed without profit or payment to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving this information for non-profit research and educational purposes only.] |