One way the Air Force could come up with the $30 billion it says it’s shifting from “legacy” systems to urgent new priorities would be to retire eight major aircraft, including two bomber fleets, according to Todd Harrison, writing for the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Harrison’s route isn’t the only one USAF could take, and he cautions it’s not a “recommendation,” but wholesale retirements save the most in the least amount of time, he said. The analysis was based on Harrison’s own work as well as hints dropped by senior USAF leaders in recent months.
The Air Force’s pursuit of a light attack aircraft may split into two separate tracks: one that continues down the road to procurement and another that looks into new options for armed overwatch, USAF acquisition boss Will Roper said Nov. 12. Special operations forces have been particularly vocal about the need for armed overwatch, which is currently provided by platforms like the MQ-9 Reaper and the AC-130J gunship. “There are systems right now that we don’t really think of as being in the [US Special Operations Command] portfolio, like MQ-9s, that we’d like to explore and see, can they do a better job?” Roper said. “Experimentation with systems we have now, I think is a great way to try to go after that role.”
US-managed airstrikes in Afghanistan dropped in October but rose in Iraq and Syria, according to new data published by Air Forces Central Command. In Afghanistan, the number of airstrikes by manned and unmanned platforms dipped from 948 in September to 777 in October. In Iraq and Syria, the airstrike tally rose slightly to 166 in October from 137 in September. The US began withdrawing the bulk of its forces from Syria in early October, though Defense Secretary Mark Esper said the Pentagon could continue air support there.
American forces killed a terrorist affiliated with the al-Shabaab group in a Nov. 12 airstrike, US Africa Command announced. The strike was part of an ongoing partnership with the Somali government to “maintain pressure on al-Shabaab’s network and levels of leadership while countering violent extremist intentions and actions,” AFRICOM Operations Director Army Maj. Gen. William Gayler said in a release.
