Replacing Aircraft.

• Position: Brief Article

The Air Force needs to replace as many as 150 aircraft per year for the next 15 to 20 years, according to Air Force Secretary F. Whitten Peters.

That's three times the number that was replaced this year, he told defense reporters. And it will cost an additional $20 billion to $30 billion per year more, he said.

The service doesn't have any choice, Peters said, because of the age of its fleet. "We have a lot of old iron that's going to go away...