U.S. Air Force lacks aircraft for mission - shortage may worsen after A-10 Thunderbolt II attack aircraft are scrapped
"U.S. Air Force Has No Planes" - that's the kind of headline you can expect to see in the Russian propaganda media after the latest statement by Mark Kelly, head of the United States Air Force's Combat Aviation Command.
Here's What We Know
According to Kelly, the Air Force needs three more squadrons of aircraft to effectively accomplish all its missions. And the shortage could worsen with the retirement of the A-10 Thunderbolt II attack aircraft.
The U.S. Air Force has 48 fighter squadrons and nine attack squadrons that consist of the A10 Thunderbolt II. Thus, the service has a total of 57 squadrons that carry out missions designed for 60 squadrons. What's more, a 2018 study of U.S. Air Force needs found that the service needed 62 formations. The new study is classified for now.
That said, Mark Kelly notes that the A10 Thunderbolt II attack aircraft will be of little use in future wars if faced with an adversary with an advanced air defense system. The U.S. Air Force is already emphasizing the need to decommission some, if not all, of the attack aircraft fleet. In that case, the service would have to create 12 more fighter squadrons.
Currently, the U.S. Air Force needs 28 formations for the Indo-Pacific, Europe and the Middle East. The service also needs to have 16 squadrons domestically. Eight squadrons are needed for rapid crisis response, and an equal number more for training and modernization.
Mark Kelly argues that to remedy the situation, the U.S. should buy at least 72 fighter jets annually and accelerate the pace of unmanned systems like the MQ-28 Ghost Bat. But it's not certain that the Defense Department will allocate funds for a dramatic increase in aircraft purchases. The fiscal year 2023 budget includes the purchase of 24 F-15EX Eagle II fighters and 33 F-35A Lightning IIs, with the possibility of an additional seven F-35A Lightning IIs.
Source: Defense News
Images: Wikipedia, Air Force Technology
