Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. T. Michael "Buzz" Moseley says he is considering further adjustments to force structure as Pentagon bean counters play the numbers for the upcoming fiscal 2008 budget and consider the risk associated with the entree of the Joint Strike Fighter into the Air Force arsenal.

Among the options is a full rewinging and re-engining of the A-10 fleet, which already is getting improved targeting capabilities. While Moseley says he wants to keep the F-16CJs in the fleet for as long as possible, he told a group of reporters at a breakfast in Washington April 11 that options for the remainder of the F-16 fleet are more "complicated" than those of its F-15 counterparts.

A roadmap of options for the remaining F-15Cs and Strike Eagles is nearly complete. That document is expected to outline needed upgrades, such as active electronically scanned array (AESA) radars, for some F-15Cs that would allow them to detect cruise missiles. Raytheon officials have been pitching upgrades to the existing radars as well as new systems for the F-15.

In the meantime, F-22s already have begun flying in support of Operation Noble Eagle, protecting the skies over North America, Moseley says.

The four-star also says he's considering pulling the C-130E-model aircraft out of the Boeing Avionics Modernization Program (AMP), which is overhauling the entire U.S. Hercules fleet's avionics systems. In addition to being caught up in the Darleen Druyun scandal - Boeing's win over C-130 manufacturer Lockheed Martin came during her period of favoritism toward the Chicago-based giant - the C-130 AMP program has seen its costs jump by 11 percent, Pentagon officials recently told Congress.

The jump is due largely to an extended production and procurement profile and a "change" in program assumptions, according to Pentagon documents. The program is now worth nearly $5 billion.

Moseley also says that he could save $5 billion by not re-engining the C-5A fleet. He maintains that 180 C-17s are enough to handle strategic transport requirements. However, an additional seven are needed, he says, to replace an increase in the C-17 fleet's "burn rate." Although none of the aircraft have been retired, Moseley says he hopes to secure funding through supplemental requests this fiscal year to finance the purchases.

As officials look ahead to the FY '08 budget build, Moseley says they are considering tweaks to earlier budget decisions already offered to Congress in the FY '07 request now under consideration. The Air Force may have to extend the life of the U-2 fleet beyond FY '11, its current retirement date. Likewise, officials may have to add more money to the F-117 account to keep that fleet flying beyond its 2008 retirement date.