Officials: Military aircraft miss readiness target — again

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. — Key U.S. military aircraft have for years been missing goals for their readiness to fly missions, the U.S. Government Accountability Office reports.

The agency said the Navy’s F/A18E and F Super Hornet fighter jets, its E-2C Hawkeye early warning aircraft and C-2A cargo planes did not meet annual goals for the total time they can fly and perform their mission at any time between fiscal years 2011 and 2019.

The Air Force’s F-22 Raptors also missed their annual goals for all of those years.

The Navy’s E-2D Advanced Hawkeye, which is to replace the E-2C, missed its goal in each of the six years since its introduction. Navy F/A-18A-D Hornets met their goal once in the nine-year period.

“The average annual mission capable rate for the selected Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps aircraft decreased since fiscal year 2011,” the GAO said.

Analysts inside and outside the military have warned for years that a shortage of people and replacement parts could affect air operations and make the aircraft less safe.

The GAO’s review of 46 military aircraft found that only one, the Air Force’s UH-1N Huey, reached its goal every year. Most missed their goals a majority of the time, with 24 never making the target and five hitting their goals only once.

For the Navy’s workhorse F/A18E and F, with an average age of 12 years and time aloft averaging 3,526 hours, unexpected repairs, parts shortages and components that are no longer useful or are no longer being made were significant problems, GAO reported.

Maintenance costs account for $700 million of the Super Hornet’s $3.29 billion annual operating cost in fiscal year 2018.

The Navy has a contract with Boeing to extend the service life of the Super Hornet from 6,000 to 10,000 hours through modifications, but that comes with big maintenance cost increases since several life-limited components require replacement at 6,000 flight hours.