DoD Eyes Lower Funding for T-Sat, Missile Defense

摘要

The U.S. Air Force plans to spend less money than previously anticipated in the coming years for a next-generation satellite communications system, and will examine scaling back the capability of a space-based missile warning system already well into development, according to an internal Pentagon budget document. The document, approved Dec. 23 by Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz, also shows a higher six-year funding profile for a proposed constellation of radar satellites for ground surveillance, but reduced funding over that same period for missile defense programs. The Program Budget Decision No. 753, details of which were first reported by the Web site InsideDefense.com, calls for $55 billion in overall cuts to Pentagon weapon programs over the next six years to address the U.S. budget deficit and the growing cost of military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. The document, which does not specify the proposed 2006 funding requests for programs, nonetheless provides a snapshot of the Defense Department's thinking as it prepares to submit its final spending plan to Capitol Hill in the coming weeks.