The Air Force's "Forever War" is its Toughest Pill to Swallow

AIR FORCE MAGAZINE, MARCH 2018

JOHN A. TIRPAK, EDITORIAL DIRECTOR

The Air Force’s 27 years of standing as the world’s unrivaled airpower are officially over. “Peer” competitors—the term “near-peer” has recently been dropped from official language—now challenge America’s ability to control the skies in any conflict. 

  The upshot is that the considerable capital investment the United States made in air superiority 30 years ago must be made again, or the US may no longer hold significant advantages in a future conflict.

  This frank assessment came from Air Combat Command chief Gen. James “Mike” Holmes. He called this a “blinding flash of the obvious.” 

  A steady parade of impressive new systems and investments by China, Russia, and other aspiring great powers means the US will have to push harder and faster to keep ahead—and maybe just to keep up.