On September 27th, The Wall Street Journal reported on defense department appropriations for the new fiscal year. Here\'s a partial list of new hardware that\'s being ordered by the US government, and where additional funds are being allocated for continued research and development:
 
  • 36 new Osprey OV-22 tilt-rotor aircraft
  • 14 new F-35 Joint Strike Fighters
  • An added cash injection for the F-22 Raptor programme
  • $1.5 billion will go toward building a third high-tech Navy destroyer. (The article notes that the Navy tried to scuttle the program this summer, but Congress is keeping it alive due to “intense political pressure.”)
It strikes me that these investments by government are what keep some of our hobbies going!

You can read the whole article online here.