The United States Air Force

The after taking 25 years to develop the F22 Raptor from conception to operational certification the United States Air Force (USAF) produced the world’s first 5th Generation air superiority fighter. (site) This revolutionary fighter plane leveraged its very low observable stealth (VLO) and thrust-vectoring and digital fly by wire technology, to produce an extremely fast, agile and deadly air to air combatant. (GEO P 2) However, in 2009 Robert Gates, Secretary of Defense, (SECDEF) convinced the President (POTUS) and Congress to truncate the F22 program, leaving the USAF with less than 187 operational F22 Raptors, this number was well short of the 381 the USAF estimated they needed to meet their mission requirements. (AWC 1/ site) Gates made his controversial decision based on three factors. This essay will explore these factors and explain how the 2009 U.S strategic environment, the overall cost of the F22 and Secretary Gates’ desire to change the Department of Defense (DOD) all lead to the decision to limit the production of the F22 Raptor at 187 aircraft.

The U.S. Marine Corps’ is thought to be one of the five free standing military departments, but in all actuality there is only three departments. The U.S. Army, U.S. Air Force, and the U.S. Navy are the only branches of the military that are correctly recognized as their own departments. There are two other Branches of the military that are under the U.S. Navy, one is the United States Marine Corps’. They were created to protect, but now they need protecting from budget cuts and disbanding. In order to protect the Corps’, they need to become their own U.S. Department, with their own funding and supplies.

In a 2015 article, “Is U.S. military becoming outdated?” written by Stuart Bradin, Keenan Yoho, and Meaghan Keeler-Pettigrew, the authors argued that despite the U.S. military maintaining a position of global dominance “without peer” during conventional operations, it is not the ideal force against current and future threats. The authors claim that there are several negative factors arising due to the past sixteen years of war against several state and non-state elements, inferior cultural differences of government bureaucracy compared to commercial firms, and a misallocation of defense spending that leaves the US military waging war inefficiently while simultaneously losing technological dominance against current and future threats.

Introduction In the 20th-century Canada in support of its closest ally “Great Britain” participated in two world wars. These were wars with new technology, specifically the “fixed wing aircraft” which gave birth to a new battlefield “the sky”. This changed the tactics of previous wars, the airplane was capable of many duties; ranging from aerial reconnaissance to ground attack to the tactical and strategic bombing, both by day and night. Canada did not start with an Air Force, however was a major player in the battle for the sky. This synopsis will discuss the role Canada played in the training of Air Force Personnel from World War One (WWI) through World War Two (WWII).

Of all the countries in the world, the United States Air Force has more aircraft than any other country. The current number of aircraft available to USAF is over 5,000. There is also over 300,000 active personnel (“United States Air Force”). “It is the most recent branch of the U.S. military to be formed, and is the largest and one of the world's most technologically advanced air forces.” (“United States Air Force”). One of their main purposes is to protect the United States and all of its

The United States Air Force has been able to carry on a great tradition of air supremacy and advanced technology. They were born in September 1947, when they separated from the Army Air Core, and became their own unit (www.peterson.af.mil). Providing for the troops that serve always has been a top priority of the Air Force. The Air Force is run in management form, just like any large organization, or small business. It has a rank structure, where tasks are delegated down from the ranking Officers through the Enlisted Core. After significant evaluation, I have researched and identified the following six categories necessary for the Air Force to preserve

The Armed Forces of the United States stand at an inflection point. Fourteen years of sustained combat forged a seasoned force capable of success across the range of military operations from military engagement to joint and multinational major combat operations. Today, this seasoned force is tasked to reset from a decade plus of counterinsurgency operations and evolve capability and capacity to defend the Nation from an increasingly complex security environment. Furthermore, this transformation must be completed in the face of a stark fiscal federal budget.

Over the years, America has been involved in numerous conflicts. One of the most controversial has been the Vietnam War. Even though the United States Military failed in its efforts in the war against Vietnam, the military has learned valuable lessons about our forces during the conflict. Anti-Aircraft weapons were used during the Vietnam War, and their capabilities have increased over time to become what is now called Air Defense. Air Defense’s equipment, units, and personnel played a critical role especially during the ambush on Route 9 of the Vietnam War.

The Unites States Air Force is a huge organization that employs a huge workforce annually who works as its security forces. The organization's mission is to fly, fight, and win all battles in the air, cyberspace, and air. As a huge organization, it acts as one of the most attractive options for individuals who are seriously considering a career with the security forces. However, such individuals should conduct an adequate research before choosing to seek for job opportunities with the organization. This is largely because individual responsibilities in the United States Air Force contain various risks that are associated with different jobs.

The Aviation Branch of the U.S. Army, as we know it today, did not exist at the turn of the 1800 to 1900 centuries. The military did use a Balloon Corps and Detachment for the Civil and Spanish-American Wars respectfully. However, the Army deactivated both organizations after their usage in the campaigns. These artillery spotters and reconnoiters were helpful. However, the leadership did not see a usage for them outside of war. Therefore, it would take someone understanding the potential of air power to open a door for its peacetime usage. This occurred with the birth of the Signal Corps.

From the early age of airpower development in the United States, airpower theorists, and advocates believed and prophesized, that airpower can win the war by itself. Turning back to the age prior to the independence of the United States Air Force (USAF) as a service, airpower advocates emphasized that bomber will always get through and that it will produce decisive blow to the enemy and win the war. Moreover, they argued that airpower alone could win the war quickly without the need to employ other services, that it is cheaper because bombers replace large force employment costs and precisely hitting only important targets avoids collateral damage. That promise of the early airpower advocates continued to be the core belief of the new independent United States Air Force after 1947. Looking its promise over the past 70 years the airpower gradually advanced toward its fulfillment and with rapid technology advances, that the USAF is highly dependent on, airpower finally achieved its promise. The airpower proved to end wars more quickly and save lives of solders, to cost less in order to achieve military and political objectives, and to avoid collateral damage with its precision capabilities. Nevertheless, implications of achievement of promise can be that airpower can be used as a mean of political objectives that can severely limit or misuse airpower’s capabilities.

“War”. As a kid growing up in America, it is a word that you become very accustom to hearing whether it is from your television, parents, or teachers. In America’s history, Americans have always been adamant about upholding the strength of their Armed Forces and making sure no other country becomes a threat of any sort. In the late 1800s, the United States Armed Forces created the military which consist of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, and Coast Guard. All these forces are obviously there for some reason which are reported on television becoming the talk of the American adults and onto their children. Also, as children get higher in their grade level they begin learning for themselves about the military. I couldn’t tell you about how other children took in the information of these Armed Forces, but I will tell you about mine.

The art and science of warfighting is an amazingly broad and deep subject with complexities that bridge the technical aspects of war and the social interactions that win them. Whether we discuss tactical intricacies of the battlefield or bureaucratic complexities at the Pentagon, multi-faceted problem sets bombard our branch. The government directed Budget Control Act of 2011 in concert with sequestration, the Holistic Aviation Assessment Task Force, the Aviation Restructure Initiative, and a significant operational transition from counterinsurgency to decisive action are just some of the complex, ill-structured, or so-called "wicked problems" that exist. The second and third order effects of these programs and the consequences of decisions

Early theorists such as Mitchell, Douhet and Trenchard, held greater expectations from airpower than what it has been ultimately able to provide. Robert “Bob” Mitchell, whose ideas had considerable leverage on how the Air Force developed, is considered the “father of the modern Air Force.” He believed in an Air Force that was independent of other branches of service as this was the best plan for defense. Douhet hypothesized that rapid victory could emerge by “early air attack on the enemy’s vital centers, while surface forces worked to contain the enemy on the ground.” Douhet is unique among theorists in that he was a proponent of using air power to target civilians.

The concept of airpower and its effectiveness against the enemy’s fielded military forces is well documented in a number of literatures. In the history of American military, airpower has been considered not only as the sharpest military sword but also a highly versatile set of tools used to effectively promote national strategy. Airpower’s effectiveness in support of national strategy has significantly improved since 1945. The study of airpower exposed certain consistencies which have affected its effectiveness. The theory and practice of airpower filled the past century with frequently persuasive victories coupled with a historical documentation packed with arguable failures. It is important to note that the effectiveness of airpower, as a military operational strategy, has triggered a debate among proponents and non-proponents. Some airpower theorists have debated its effectiveness. Throughout history, the many claims about airpower’s decisiveness to independently win wars or conflicts have hindered the notional and real application of this instrument of power. This essay highlights factors which consider the scope of the strengths and limitations of airpower that has been and will continue to be effective throughout the 21st century.