WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — Trump's 2018 budget plan for the Department of Defense contains more that $700 million for the Afghan forces’ air lift program
"[The budget plan] includes over $700 million for the program to address aviation lift and aerial fires capability gaps and transition from Russian-manufactured to US-manufactured rotary wing assets," the document released on Tuesday stated.
20 May 2017, 08:36 GMT
On May 10, US Central Command (CENTCOM) commander Gen. Joseph Votel told the Senate Armed Service Committee that Russian-made Mi-17 helicopter is both undersized and proving to be more expensive and difficult to sustain than originally envisioned.
The Defense Department explained that the $700-million request is an addition to the $814 million proposed in fiscal year 2017 Afghanistan Security Forces Fund (ASFF) document to begin transitioning the Afghan aviation fleet.
The ASFF plan included 53 UH-60 helicopters, 30 armed MD-530F helicopters, six A-29 attack aircraft and five AC-208s.
