In addition to operating its own Predator unmanned aerial vehicle squadron—the 3rd Special Operations Squadron at Creech AFB, Nev.—Air Force Special Operations Command has just taken charge of a reactivated 11th Intelligence Squadron to process and disseminate Predator data tailored to special operations forces. The Air Force reactivated the 11th IS earlier this month at Hurlburt Field, Fla., with about 38 members initially and plans to grow it to 135 airmen by 2008.
The roles and missions executed by Air Force warriors are essential to the nation’s security. Yet after three decades of constant demand and minimal replenishment, our Air Force is too small and too old. It needs to be rebuilt. The Trump administration and Congress must fund that modernization to ensure…