Gen. Bruce Carlson, head of Air Force Materiel Command, wants a program officer who knows what he’s talking about. “I want [the program officer] to have the technical background to be able to answer me instead of finding someone else to answer my question,” Carlson said at the recent Air Force acquisition leaders forum in Charlotte, N.C. He said he intends to make getting more technically qualified young people into acquisition positions one of his new goals. And, he wants to hone these young talents in both acquisition and operations. A couple of years ago, USAF appeared to be rebounding from a shortage of personnel with scientific and engineering backgrounds. However, those personnel were needed primarily in USAF labs. And, there is still concern nationwide over the growing dearth of students graduating in science and technical fields.
The rate of building B-21 bombers would speed up if the fiscal 2026 defense budget passes. But it remains unclear how much capacity would be added, and whether the Air Force would simply build the bombers faster, or buy more.
