Wowsa! The Air Force is gonna save up to $133 million dollars a year by flying

[unhappycamper]

C-17s bound for Afghanistan over Russia.


1st AF plane flies over Russia under new pact
Staff report
Posted : Thursday Oct 15, 2009 16:29:30 EDT

Through the Cold War, Air Force crews trained to penetrate Russian air space and face an onslaught of interceptor jets and ant-aircraft missiles.

Now, Air Force crews just need the proper documents to fly over Russia.

On Oct. 8, an Air Force C-17 Globemaster crewed by airmen from the 437th Airlift Wing, Charleston Air Force Base, S.C., became the first Air Force plane to fly over Russia while ferrying supplies for troops in Afghanistan, an Air Force release said.

Prior to that mission, aircrews had to avoid Russian air space, flying zigzagging routes over Europe and Asia.

In July, Russian officials agreed to let Air Force planes carrying troops and military supplies fly over Russia on their way to Manas Air Base in Kyrgyzstan and to Afghanistan. The agreement permits 4,500 flights annually.


Rest of article at: http://www.airforcetimes.com/news/2009/10/airforce_russia_overflights_101509w/



unhappycamper comment: This begs the question: If we're going to save $133 million a year by flying a more direct route, how much are we spending flying stuff to Afghanistan?

[hobbit709]

1. Good question.

How much are we spending and what else is going on.

[Obamanaut]

2. Also, if we stop flying stuff TO Afghanistan, and simply fly the troops

FROM there (and maybe some of the stuff), how much more will we save, and how many people?

[Sinti]

5. Can we fly in food and supplies to help the Afghan folks rebuild a bit? n/t

[Obamanaut]

8. No. There will be plenty of equipment left behind to use. nt

[Sinti]

9. You can't eat guns, landmines and mortar shells n/t

[Obamanaut]

10. Poppies are chewable. nt

[wroberts189]

3. Russia is laughing at us. nt

[Canuckistanian]

6. "You want to occupy Afghanistan? Knock yourself out."

"Been there, done that. No, thanks"

[wroberts189]

12. ...Payback is a b*tch.. they drink vodka and laugh at us.

Unlike us they know history.


And like history will foretell we will pull out once we figure it out.


sad


knr

[Canuckistanian]

15. That's very true

Russians DO know history. And they learn.

Americans make the same mistakes, over and over and over again.

And to think, they once called Afghanistan "Russia's Vietnam"

[Fumesucker]

4. When your enemy is busy shooting giant smoking holes in his feet..

You do everything you can to help him in his endeavor.

Russians *know* getting involved in Afghanistan is bad medicine.

[PVnRT]

7. We have to fight them over! Do you want a mushroom cloud smoking gun?

Seriously, in GDP, they're almost making that argument in support of Afghaninam.

[madokie]

11. And the Afghani didn't do anything to us

its crazy how all this has come down and none of which is as stated

[wroberts189]

13. You really have to ask the question: Why would Russia allow this?

Because it's in their strategic interests.


Whether or not they are aligned with our own.. who knows ? But I doubt it.

[Strelnikov_]

14. If the enemy is destroying themselves . . .

don't get in the way.

[Algorem]

16. we only have to air-drop 10% of the opium cargo into Russia on the way back.

that's a pretty good deal,only 10%.