US Air Force begins grounding some combat squadrons because of automatic spending cuts

Published April 09, 2013
Associated Press

NORFOLK, Va. – The Air Force is grounding about a third of its active-duty combat aircraft because of automatic spending cuts.

The stand-down will affect units stationed in the U.S., Europe and the Pacific. Those units include fighter, bomber, aggressor and airborne warning and control squadrons.

Air Combat Command at Joint Base Langley-Eustis in Hampton, Va. made the announcement Tuesday.

Some units deployed that include F-16s, F-22s, A-10s and B-1s will stand down after they return home from their deployments. Other units began Tuesday.

The Air Force says the stand-down is the result of cuts to the command's operations and maintenance account. The Air Force says it must reduce its flying by about 45,000 fewer training hours before Oct. 1 than it previously planned.