Hello journos covering the #OpenSkiesTreaty, I have a tip 4 you; remember Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR)'s incessant whining about how expensive buying 2 civ air-frames would be? Here's the (1) Airbus A319 the @bundeswehrInfo asked @LHTechnik to modify for the job

That's a video from last year, and that plane is likely going to be certified for the 2021 season with a digital electro-optical sensor, the same family of digital sensorthe American public was misled to believe would be a Russian game-changer by a ~2016 disinformation campaign.

But that's not the scoop; the scoop is the very expensive upgrade to the German plane is quite a feat, and that same extensive work has been done and paid for on the American OC-135B. Yes, the #USAF already converted their sensor to digital, and blew Millions on R&D and install.

I shouldn't need to tell you, Sen Tom Cotton's full of .
It's never been about the money, they fleeced the taxpayer for a new digital electro-optical sensor, the same type of sensor they alleged gave the Russians an unfair advantage in 2016; now just in time to kill the treaty.

It would have taken the #USAF 7 years longer than the #RuAF to field an Open Skies Treaty-certified digital sensor configuration. That's pretty damning and embarrassing detail, no? That's a more likely reason to try and kill the treaty, before they admit they misled the public.

https://twitter.com/KIHOMAC/status/1219999332084199427?s=20

Interestingly, they're still going; I thought they were done-done. $31.6m spent of $43.9m allocated; I think they're pretty close to done. I wonder what's left?
OSCC certification and acceptance? IDK.

https://govtribe.com/award/federal-contract-award/delivery-order-fa822212d0013-sd05