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I hope you step on a Lego.

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And suddenly the new E-3/E-8/RC-135 moves from the bottom of every UPT dream sheet to #1

737 type ratings for all!

I know Napoleon_Tanerite. The brain damage is already there.

Or we could steal the Navy P-8, which is already tested and approved for a similar role.

True statement. I've never had the displeasure of meeting or working with this doofus so I have to live vicariously through the pain and suffering of others.

Unfortunately this statement has/will be echoed for the entirety of his tenure. A lot of resources were wasted in the past few years no one will ever get back, particularly in sweat and tears of guys trying to right the ship. Smoother seas ahead...

Credit to Heithold for this. I wonder how much time/money could have been saved if his predecessors had listened to every SME who had an opinion on the J having a large bore cannon from the start so that Heithold didn't have to unfuck it. It's not the kind of thing that can be proven (because you can't subject different platforms to identical scenarios and compare the outcome), but the Stinger configuration costs lives in the long run.

I think I'm tracking on the intent of your original post. I just want a new fat-kid EW bird that can fill the same role as the EC-130 in the SEAD triad. Something with lots of room for expansion of new capes, has a long dwell time on station, and is capable of finding it's own targets, etc. If that means putting it on a 2-eng 777, cool. If it means putting it on Js, also cool. I thought C-17 were the answer for a while, but that's gas guzzling SUV that's maybe not worth the induced fuel costs for the additional benefit. Really I just want the AF to quit dropping EW in priority. It's too important a force multiplier to be shelved. Annnnd at this point I'm putting a pin in it. We'll pick it up if we ever cross paths in a more appropriate forum.