The Heritage Foundation described the Air Force’s readiness levels as “continuing to spiral downward” in its latest assessment of U.S. military strength, leading the conservative think tank to label USAF’s overall strength as “very weak,” its lowest possible grade on a five-point scale. In particular, the ...
The U.S. must augment its nuclear deterrence in South Korea with strategic asset support and a recommitment to South Korea's defense, according to a new Heritage Foundation report.
The Air Force’s readiness has hit new lows due to pilot shortages, low flying hours, and aging aircraft, the Heritage Foundation’s 2023 Index of U.S. Military Strength found—leading the conservative think tank to give the service its lowest possible rating of “very weak.” The Space ...
Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall said lower-cost unmanned platforms are key to closing any capability gaps created by reducing the fleet in the near-term while the service invests in capabilities that will enable it to compete with peer adversary China in the long-term. "By having ...
For years, the National Guard’s State Partnership Program, whereby individual states partner with other nations’ militaries to provide training and support, flew mostly under the radar. Costing roughly $40 million per year, it represents a tiny fraction of the Pentagon’s budget. That's changing as Russia’s ...
The Biden Administration's inflation estimates will be the big story related to the fiscal 2023 defense budget submission, experts said in a streamed Center for Strategic and International Studies “budget preview” Feb. 7. The inflation estimates will either be greeted as realistic—and damning for the ...
The Heritage Foundation ranked both the Air Force and the Space Force as “weak” in its 2022 Index of U.S. Military Strength released Oct. 20, citing issues ranging from low readiness and misaligned investment in fourth-generation platforms to insufficient space domain awareness and offensive space ...
The drama of the twin Georgia Senate runoff elections looming in January could seep into negotiations over the 2021 defense policy bill, a key GOP lawmaker warned Nov. 17. Rep. Mac Thornberry (R-Texas), who is retiring this term as ranking member of the House Armed ...
Major news outlets declared former Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. the President-elect on Nov. 7, ushering in a new era for the military under a Democratic administration. Biden has secured enough electoral votes to win the presidency, though Trump has pledged to challenge state ...
Defense Secretary Mark T. Esper on Oct. 15 said he is keeping a close eye on the modernity and readiness of the Air Force’s tanker fleet. During an on-stage discussion with Thomas Spoehr, director of the Heritage Foundation’s Center for National Defense, Esper also cited ...
The Defense Department “collected nearly 11,000 units” of COVID-19 convalescent plasma by the end of fiscal 2020—almost 3,000 units more than its original goal—Defense Secretary Mark T. Esper announced during an Oct. 15 Heritage Foundation event. Donations of blood plasma containing antibodies for the new ...
The Space Force hasn’t yet turned 1 year old, but it’s already planning for what it wants to be in 30 years. Charting that long-term vision will be a main focus of the newest service in its second year, Pentagon space policy boss Justin T. ...