The Cost of Tough Guy Joe Taking Down a Balloon; Half-Million and Still Rising
Cost: Over a third-of-a-million dollars per missile.
We all know that an Air Force F-22 Raptor from Langley Air Force Base, VA, dropped the Communist Chinese spy balloon off the coast of Myrtle Beach, SC.
But Biden using a sledgehammer to kill a fly raises more than a few questions.
Why did an uber-expensive F-22 along with an equally pricy AIM-9 Sidewinder have to be used to drop a mere balloon?
F-22 Raptors take to the sky… at the cost of $70,000 per flight hour.
Were there no F/A-18 Hornets from either MCAS (Marine Corps Air Station) Cherry Point, NC, nor any from MCAS Beaufort, SC, available?
Keep in mind that Shaw AFB (Air Force Base) in Sumpter, SC, with its F-16 Fighting Falcons, or even Seymore Johnson AFB in Goldsboro, NC, with its F-15 Strike Eagles?
The reason why I cited those Marine Corps and Air Force bases is because the F-15s, the F-16s and the F/A-18s all come complete with the M61 Vulcan 20mm cannon.
After all, a couple of bursts from a 20mm is a damn sight cheaper than a Sidewinder.
How much cheaper? As noted by CBS17.com of Raleigh, NC, a singular AIM-9 costs a whopping $381,069.
The Communists finally have their man in the White House.
Unless the 20mm rounds are made of pure gold, I find it hard to believe that Vulcan ammo is anywhere near the cost of a singular Sidewinder.
But wait, there’s more.
According to MilitaryMachine.com, the cost of just one flight hour for the Raptor is an eye-popping $70,000.
CBS17 also notes that there wasn’t just one Raptor assigned to take down the offending balloon, but two.
But wait, there’s more.
Again from CBS17;
F-15 Eagles flying from Barnes Air National Guard Base, Massachusetts, supported the F-22, as did air refueling tankers from multiple states including South Carolina and North Carolina.
USS Carter Hall with the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) .
Notice that there is no mention of just how many F-15s were used, just that it was in the plural.
But wait, there’s more.
The USNI News (US Naval Institute) cites that three major warships along with a bevy of US Coast Guard ships and boats are surrounding the crash site;
Guided-missile destroyer USS Oscar Austin (DDG-79), guided-missile cruiser USS Philippine Sea (CG-58) and amphibious warship USS Carter Hall (LSD-50) are on station near the crash site. Coast Guard cutters and boats are also on the scene to assist in the recovery, a message left with a Coast Guard Atlantic Area spokesman was not immediately returned.
I may not have all the answers as to what’s going on, but I know this doesn’t pass the smell test.
