The Air Force’s fiscal year 2018 budget request contains billions of dollars to ramp up development work on several major new aviation and missile programs, including the B-21 bomber and the Long Range Standoff Weapon (LRSO).
The B-21 Raider, which will replace aging bombers, would receive $2 billion in FY 2018, up from $1.3 billion the previous year, according to Air Force documents released May 23.
“It’s just a natural progression of the program,” Carolyn Gleeson, budget deputy in the Air Force financial management and comptroller office, told reporters at the Pentagon. The B-21 is “moving into detailed design. It’s fully funded and progressing like we would expect it to.”
Two programs developing nuclear-armed missiles – LRSO and the Ground Based Strategic Deterrent (GBSD) — would also see significant funding increases in the Air Force budget.
LRSO, which will replace the Air Launched Cruise Missile, would receive $451 million in FY 2018, up from $96 million the previous year. GBSD, which will replace the ground-launched Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile, would receive $216 million, up from $114 million.
The Air Force’s total budget would be $183 billion, up from $171.2 billion the previous year. Procurement would total $24.7 billion, an $800 million increase, and research and development would get $25.4 billion, up $5.2 billion. Operation and maintenance would receive $49.2 billion, a $1.3 billion hike, and the overseas contingency fund would get $13.9 billion, up $1 billion.
