Precipice of Parity: Future of the USAF Fighter Force Structure.

摘要

The United States has and will place a premium on the ability of the military to project power on a scale capable of conducting major combat operations in support of national security objectives. Now, and for the foreseeable future, the CAF fighter force s ability to support those objectives is threatened by both external and internal factors. The emergence of A2/AD capabilities over the past two-decades now provides the possibility, and soon the probability, of thwarting the United States ability to project power. These possibilities are even more pertinent as the United States has embarked on a strategic rebalance to the Asia-Pacific region, bringing the A2/AD capabilities of China to the forefront of CAF fighter force structure decision-making. As the United States continues to exit from over a decade defined by two wars, the need to recapitalize and modernize the CAF fighter force in order to operate effectively in A2/AD environments will meet the realities of budgetary uncertainty. As the effects of the Budget Control Act of 2011 and subsequent sequestration over the next 10 years persist, the Air Force is obliged to make difficult choices concerning its fighter fleet that will result in a smaller number of available aircraft than are present today. The situation is going to arise where the CAF will have a significant gap in total number of airplanes it has and the total number of airplanes it needs. The Air Force views a fifth-generation equipped fighter force as the necessary means to continuing support for American national security objectives due to the low probability of the legacy fourth-generation fighters to operate, or even survive, in a highly-contested environment. To continue to support this ability when faced by the highly contested A2/AD environment in the future, the CAF fighter force must receive its full planned complement of fifth-generation capability.