US Mil privitizing cargo

[potrack]

Anyone else heard the rumor that the military is thinking about privitizing the cargo airlift?

Not the tactical stuff but the "Main base to main base" long haul stuff just carrying palletized cargo international.

I also heard the crews may be selected from a contract company?

anyone?

 

[bafanguy]

Heard some outfit was starting a cargo operation with civilian C-17's someplace in New England. I think I saw it on pprune a few months ago...nothing lately.


Sounds like some pretty wild speculation.

 

[Big Beer Belly]

Anyone else heard the rumor that the military is thinking about privitizing the cargo airlift?

Not the tactical stuff but the "Main base to main base" long haul stuff just carrying palletized cargo international.

I also heard the crews may be selected from a contract company?

anyone?

The whole purpose of Strategic airlift is to support the Army in the first 30 days of battle ... that single premise drives all acquisitions. The Army dictates how many M1A1's and other battle equipment needs to be moved and how far and that drives the airlift requirement. Peacetime movement of palletized cargo is a way of keeping the machinery "greased" for war rather than an end in its own. To the lay individual this perhaps doesn't make sense, but it is indeed how airlift (and to a lesser extent tanker support) fits into the greater DOD war fighting scheme.

The military does obviously contract out the movement of goods and personnel both in peacetime and during conflict (because it is cheaper, saves wear and tear on airlift assets, and often airlift is maxed out with current taskings (minus a comfortable contingency buffer). Perhaps the DOD is considering some sort of more permanent augmentation for these less critical airlift requirements. It has certainly been talked about for decades.

My understanding is there is very little urgent air cargo that moves base to base during peacetime. Nearly all is resupplied by land or sea. Of the missions that do require air resupply, I believe the military will retain those flights due to the "sensitive" nature/inherent risk/destination of these places. Lots of "stuff" moves under cover of darkness to places that don't exist, by people that you don't know and were never assigned to be there ...

BBB

 

[Dextermd]

I think the company that is doing the recuriting for the outfit can be found at www.waysidepro.com. They have been working on something for some time. You can read the avaition updates and see what they have done. I called them but they would not reveal who their client was. Still looks like a lot of talk but no action.

 

[skytrash]

The public announcement should take place next month is what I have heard.

 

[sandman2122]

Announcing exactly what?