The Navy does not expect to eliminate its shortfall of strike fighter aircraft until 2029 and a senior service official conceded today to lawmakers the gap could widen as a result of attrition before then. The Navy's fiscal year 2021 budget proposal includes eliminating a future planned multiyear procurement contract for 36 F/A-18E/F fighters as a trade-off to direct more funding toward the Next Generation Air Dominance program, an overarching effort to design the Super Hornet's successor. The new budget...
