General Keys: Air force fleet wearing out, risk of catastrophic failure

An airman directs an A-10 Thunderbolt II on a runway in Iraq on April 18, 2003. The A-10 attack aircraft is currently in use in Afghanistan.

LANGLEY AIR FORCE BASE, Va. — The Air Force’s fleet of warplanes is the oldest ever and wearing out, running the risk of a catastrophic failure, according to the head of the Air Force’s fighting fleet.

Gen. Ronald Keys, who leads Air Combat Command, points to cracked wings on A-10 attack planes, frayed electrical cables on U-2 spy planes and worn turbine blades on B-1 bombers. The Air Force spends 87% more on maintenance to maintain a fleet that is 15% less capable than in 1996, Keys said.

“I’m very concerned that until we finally auger one in on takeoff, or over a city somewhere because a wing falls off, no one believes it,” Keys said.

The average age of an Air Force warplane is 24 years.

Read the rest at Air Force Times

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