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The biggest thing working against the Bone is the fact it has been out of production for over 30 years, and there is not a giant pool of parts sitting out in the desert ready to draw from at essentially no cost and zero leadtime. It affects the already low mission availability rates, and the only fixes involve even larger scale purchases of "new" thirty year old equipment which is largely antiquated and/or fund upgrades to newer available systems.On a BUFF if most anything breaks, they don't need to ask a contractor to scratch build a new one to spec. They just scavange a part. Faster and cheaper.On the flipside, when it's flying, the Bone is absolutely more survivable and brings some unique abilities to the table. I love it. Wish they'd keep it, but I understand the reasons it's on the block.
The biggest thing working against the Bone is the fact it has been out of production for over 30 years, and there is not a giant pool of parts sitting out in the desert ready to draw from at essentially no cost and zero leadtime. It affects the already low mission availability rates, and the only fixes involve even larger scale purchases of "new" thirty year old equipment which is largely antiquated and/or fund upgrades to newer available systems.
On a BUFF if most anything breaks, they don't need to ask a contractor to scratch build a new one to spec. They just scavange a part. Faster and cheaper.
On the flipside, when it's flying, the Bone is absolutely more survivable and brings some unique abilities to the table. I love it. Wish they'd keep it, but I understand the reasons it's on the block.
