Regiment and 1st Battalion of the 227th Aviation Regiment).--Stephen V Cole

Studies by the Air Force and Pentagon show that the F-22 Raptor is over the Congressionally-ordered spending caps. The Air Force admits that the program will come in $1 billion over budget, but the Pentagon thinks the actual cost overrun will be $8.8 billion as cost reduction efforts will not be as successful as the Air Force hopes. The Air Force wants to have the contractor do the depot-level maintenance through 2008 when the spending cap ends; this would delay $2.5 billion in spending until it no longer counted against the limit. This would mean reducing the planned purchase of 339 aircraft to about 250. That would mean eliminating one wing of fighters, disrupting the Air Force's plans