Sustaining current levels of operations on any aircraft while simultaneously recapitalizing it is a big challenge, especially when it comes to the E-8 JSTARS ground-surveillance fleet, Lt. Gen. Stanley Clarke, Air National Guard director, told reporters Tuesday at AFA’s Air & Space Conference in National Harbor, Md. JSTARS is one of “the most highly demanded platforms” by combatant commanders, said Clarke. “They want JSTARS,” he explained. However, “it’s very difficult to sustain [the] current level of effort and move on to new airplanes at the same time,” he said. Financially, it’d be impossible, and Clarke believes the Air Force needs “to take a knee” and explain that “you’re not going to get all the capability you’ve had in the past year because at some point, we have to recapitalize the suite.”
Pentagon Releases Cost of Living, BAH Rates for 2026
Dec. 30, 2025
The Pentagon will pay cost of living allowances to 127,000 service members in the continental U.S. in 2026, an increase of 66,000 members in 2025. Airmen and Guardians across the U.S. will also receive an average increase of 4.2 percent for their Basic Housing Allowance, compared to the 5.4 percent…
