Originally Posted by
F4E Mx
As critical as the Caribbean is I don't see why the USAF doesn't have an active-duty base at the old Ramey AFB with a Guard unit as tenant. Same for the Navy base at Roosevelt Roads and their associated Air Station. And why would you have decrepit C-130s with wing cracks as weather airplanes? Surely they were not asked to fly into hurricanes in those things?
Weather mission is not priority for new planes. New planes have the latest technical capabilities which are intended for warfighting. Weather is always going to be hand-me-downs. I "assume" they pay extra special attention to the structure of aircraft so employed.