QUESTION:
How will budget cuts affect NASA (will more planes like the KAO replace 
satellites)?

ANSWER from Marc Siegel on October 30, 1995:
Your question about budget cuts can be answered in several different ways.
First of all, the most significant budget cut for the Kuiper is the
decision to no longer fly the aircraft.  In order to help pay for the
next generation of airborne observatory (called SOFIA), NASA decided
that they would stop flying SOFIA and put the resulting savings into
the new aircraft. This made it more likely that SOFIA would get the
go-ahead to fly.  So the flight on OCtober 13 was the last one ever
for the KAO.  While this is sad for the dedicated team who has worked
hard on Kuiper, it was a tradeoff made long ago to help fund the SOFIA
facility.

Also, NASA is trying to get smarter about how it spends its dollars.
by consolidating many functions of the agency.  For example, where
I work (NASA Ames in Northern California) we have always flown research
aircraft.  These kinds of planes are also flown in Southern California
at Dryden Flight Research Center.  NASA management has decided to move
all of the aircraft from Ames to Dryden to save money.

Also, NASA is being much more selective about the research that is
funded.  Since less money is available, less people can get NASA dollars
to test various scientific theories.  So the competition for these
funds is harder and only the best ideas are able to obtain funding.

I hope this helps you understand how the NASA budget cuts are being
inacted.

Yours, Marc