MINOT - North Dakota's senators said they are frustrated that President Bush's budget proposal does not include funding for most of the nearly two dozen B-52 bombers at Minot Air Force Base.

The lack of money would send 17 of the 22 bombers to a "boneyard" at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in Arizona.

The bombers in Minot are part of a national program called attrition reserve, which rotates the planes into service. This is the 10th consecutive year that an executive budget has not included funding for the full fleet. Each time, Congress has restored the money.

"It just doesn't make sense - these planes are paid for, they're good until at least 2036 or even 2040 because they've been so modernized and they've got low flight hours," said Sen. Kent Conrad, D-N.D.

Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., is a member of the Air Force Appropriations Committee. He said top Air Force officers have told him they are happy the planes are in the inventory.

"The B-52 is America's best bargain," Dorgan said. "It's a plane that's fully paid for and has many years of service left on it and is a versatile weapons delivery system."

Restoring the funding for those B-52s targeted for retirement will be more difficult this time because of the growth of the deficit, Conrad said.