With the-of-end bombshells from China ( 2 6gen/5.5gen fighters + H20 model + Y20/drone combo AWACS) it seems fair to state that USAF is facing a Sputnik moment of sorts. The incoming administration needs to radically rethink force structure especially if it does significantly increase the budget.
A few thing I would do:
1) cancel ~500 F35As to pull in B21 schedule and increase target fleet size to 200 minimum. This will not hurt LMT as Navy and allies deliveries can be accelerated in near term and will only boost total allied airpower. ? mark customers like Turkey, saudi and India will more than make up for lost USAF orders down the road. B1 retirement can also be pulled in.
2) iterate on F35 to obtain an affordable 5.5gen aircraft, possible unmanned, to complement B21.
3) accelerate deployment of wingmen drones and avenger type strike drones with divestment of most F16s and all A10s. ANG should play a more active role in foreign assistance.
4) cancel the sentinel ICBM in favor of distributed hypersonic weapons. Give all rebuilt B52s nuclear ALCM and air launched hypersonic capability.
5) put renewed emphasis on AI and network powered autonomous munitions. Remove restrictions on AI on limited lethality weapons eg below 500 pounds. Explore a near space long endurance drone based AAW approach.
A few thing I would do:
1) cancel ~500 F35As to pull in B21 schedule and increase target fleet size to 200 minimum. This will not hurt LMT as Navy and allies deliveries can be accelerated in near term and will only boost total allied airpower. ? mark customers like Turkey, saudi and India will more than make up for lost USAF orders down the road. B1 retirement can also be pulled in.
2) iterate on F35 to obtain an affordable 5.5gen aircraft, possible unmanned, to complement B21.
3) accelerate deployment of wingmen drones and avenger type strike drones with divestment of most F16s and all A10s. ANG should play a more active role in foreign assistance.
4) cancel the sentinel ICBM in favor of distributed hypersonic weapons. Give all rebuilt B52s nuclear ALCM and air launched hypersonic capability.
5) put renewed emphasis on AI and network powered autonomous munitions. Remove restrictions on AI on limited lethality weapons eg below 500 pounds. Explore a near space long endurance drone based AAW approach.
statistics: Posted by navyowl — 1:19 AM - Today — Replies 9 — Views 137