An operational requirements document spelling out the specific capabilities desired in the future long-range-strike bomber had not been nailed down by early December, according to Lt. Gen. Chris Miller, USAF’s deputy chief of staff for strategic plans and programs. “That’s still being worked,” said Miller, suggesting that more than a year after then Defense Secretary Robert Gates gave the program a go-ahead, the specific missions and technologies in the airplane remain in debate. However, that means there’s still time to adjust the level of technology needed in the LRS-B if the loss to Iran of a stealthy RQ-170 Sentinel drone actually compromised critical science. The Air Force said, however, it would not have to ratchet up the bomber’s stealth capabilities (see above). Other than to restate that the service still plans to “deliver initial capability in the mid 2020s” with the LRS-B, Maj. Chad Steffey, a USAF spokesman, declined to offer new information, saying details “are and will remain classified.” (See also Bomber Puzzle Pieces.)
The Pentagon announced June 11 it is restoring $2.2 billion of military construction funds that had been reprogrammed to pay for the construction of a wall on the southern border. The funding covers 66 projects in 11 states, three territories, and 16 countries. Pentagon spokesman John F. Kirby said in…