It’s also about the insane military budget process, reliability of ongoing congressional budget support, the need for modernization of equipment and the missions assigned. In other words, it’s a juggling act. Taking these airplanes off the active role and putting them into another budget compartment is akin to playing a shell game. The airplanes thusly kept ‘active’ will still be available for use IF the need arises. Meanwhile, the reason given to keep them maintained can be as stated here. The alternative is to stash them in Tucson. This is a far better way to do it and fits your postulation, Richard.
I wouldn’t at all be surprised if a few of these airplanes didn’t suddenly get pressed into service as an alternative to using a higher value asset like the F-22. OR … suddenly show up as a QF-117 but not for target practice. I have some other ideas, too. Let’s just see.