Russian President Vladimir Putin late last week put his nation’s nuclear-equipped bombers back on regular combat patrols, something the country hasn’t done since the early 1990s. Various news reports indicated that the Bush Administration does not consider this move worrying, despite recent cooling of relations between Moscow and Washington. And, Putin in his announcement expects “understanding” from other countries. He noted, too, that Russia’s strategic crews had been grounded too long. The bombers, which may or may not fly with nuclear weapons, are expected to fly over Russian sea routes and economic zones.
Resilient position, navigation, and timing capability and command, control and communications (C3) battle management for moving target indication will be funded with new authority circumventing the traditional lengthy budget process, Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall told Congress April 16.