WASHINGTON — Two weeks after being ousted, Air Force Secretary Michael Wynne said Friday that he had a “difference in philosophy” with his boss, Defense Secretary Robert Gates, on numerous issues — not just on the nuclear slip-up that Gates said was his reason for removing Wynne.
On his final day in office, a relaxed-looking Wynne told a group of reporters that he is not angry about being forced out as the top civilian official of the Air Force. He defended his record, saying he had “pushed the system pretty hard” to ensure that the Air Force is at the leading edge of warfare.
He indicated no animosity toward Gates, with whom he said he was “not aligned” on some key issues.
“When you have a difference of philosophy with your boss, he owns the philosophy and you own the difference,” he said.
Wynne, who took office Nov. 3, 2005, after serving as the Pentagon’s top weapons buyer, is being replaced by Michael Donley, who will hold the job as the acting secretary pending Senate confirmation as the permanent replacement.
Beyond matters of philosophy, Wynne said he and Gates differed on future investment in the new-generation F-22 stealth fighter, on the extent of Air Force personnel cuts and other substantive issues.
By coincidence, Wynne’s exit came the same week the Air Force suffered yet another major setback — a ruling by the Government Accountability Office that the service had made significant errors in awarding a $35 billion aircraft contract to Northrop Grumman and its European partner. The audit agency recommended that the Air Force reopen the bidding process.
Wynne likened that setback to the disappointment felt by a baseball player who made it to the World Series and then “struck out in the ninth inning” when the outcome of the game was at stake.
He indicated that the GAO ruling had rocked the Air Force and raised some tough questions internally.
He also said it almost certainly means the Air Force will fail to put the planes into service starting in 2013, as planned.
