THE FUTURE OF
Defense Aviation
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The Legislative Landscape
Congress plays a crucial role in providing funding for the nation’s defense, working year-round to pass the annual National Defense Authorization Act and the Pentagon spending bill for the next fiscal year.
The NDAA is Congress’ main vehicle for setting U.S. defense policy and establishing a topline spending figure.
That means lawmakers have the final say on defense aviation programs, including how much is spent on the development of new aircraft as well as future procurement for U.S. allies and security partners.
This year, Congress is expected to finalize both the NDAA and the Pentagon spending bill during an end-of-year legislating sprint.
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Congressional hurdles: As we wrote in our first installment, Congress hasn’t always made things easy for the Pentagon or its contractors as it seeks to modernize the nation’s aero-defense capabilities at the pace of U.S. adversaries.
Spending caps are viewed as the biggest obstacle. Lawmakers will have to deal with the defense caps associated with the Fiscal Responsibility Act as early as December. The caps were part of the debt-limit agreement inked in 2023. It would take an act of Congress to waive the existing caps.
In August, the Senate Appropriations Committee unanimously approved an $851.7 billion defense spending bill. The Senate Armed Services Committee’s NDAA topline is more than $900 billion, although that includes a few additional line items that aren’t part of the defense appropriations bill.
Still, that’s a 3.3% increase over the FY2024 defense budget and 2.3% higher than President Joe Biden’s request. Much of the budgetary allocations for defense aviation programs came as part of the supplemental appropriations bills Congress passed to address the war in Ukraine as well as broader concerns about U.S. equipment stockpiles.
This funding would make America stronger by modernizing our fleet and improving the readiness of the U.S. military to deter any adversary.
Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine)
Next-generation fighters: Crucially, the Senate Appropriations Committee’s bill includes funding intended to keep the Next Generation Air Dominance sixth-generation fighter jet program on track. It also makes available nearly 500 more Air Force aircraft available than what Biden’s budget request would have permitted.
“This funding would make America stronger by modernizing our fleet and improving the readiness of the U.S. military to deter any adversary,” Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), the vice chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, said.
Collins, who is also the top Republican on the defense appropriations subcommittee, said the bill “would provide sorely needed funding to meet global threats that combatant commanders describe as the most dangerous in 50 years.”
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But, as we wrote in the first segment, the Air Force in July officially paused the NGAD program, which is intended to produce a replacement for the fifth-generation F-22 aircraft. Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall cited potential budget shortfalls when making the announcement.
As such, the Senate Appropriations Committee is seeking staff-level briefings to better understand the Air Force’s underlying data and assumptions that led to the decision, according to a committee aide.
The aide also told us that the Air Force has not asked either the Senate or House appropriations panels to tweak NGAD funding programs — though this request could still be made between now and when the two chambers go to conference on the defense spending package.
Protecting U.S. airspace: While the United States has the world’s strongest air defense systems, the 2023 Chinese spy balloon exposed gaps in the country’s capabilities.
That and other instances of flying objects in U.S. skies united Democrats, Republicans and intelligence leaders in their concerns about the North American Aerospace Defense Command’s ability to quickly detect and intercept incursions into U.S. airspace.
Sen. Steve Daines (R-Mont.) later introduced legislation requiring NORAD to conduct an analysis of the gaps in its capabilities, including any “limitation that has been or may be exploited by a foreign country to allow one or more air assets of the foreign country to enter the airspace of the United States or Canada unnoticed.”
While the measure has not been voted on in Congress, it highlights concerns about the safety of U.S. air spaces from foreign adversaries and certainly puts the agency on notice about deterring future incidents.
– Andrew Desiderio
Listen to this week’s podcast on The Legislative Landscape here.
The appearance of U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) visual information does not imply or constitute DoD endorsement.
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Pratt & Whitney’s F135 Engine Core Upgrade (ECU) is ensuring the F-35 Lightning II will remain the most advanced fighter for decades to come.
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