A “Space Force” Will Make The F-35 Fighter Indispensable To Air Force Relevance (From Forbes)

The Pentagon’s new Space Force will be largely carved out of the Air Force, leaving the latter service much diminished.  The Air Force won’t just lose its satellites, it will probably lose its ICBMs, its most valued networks, and a fair amount of its cyber expertise.  So Air Force leaders will need to organize the service’s scaled-back modernization program around what’s left of their core competencies.  Fielding a new tanker and bomber will remain central to service plans, but the single most indispensable program in terms of the Air Force’s future missions, identity and relevance with be the F-35A fighter.  Most of what the F-35 does can’t be accomplished from space, or by last-generation tactical aircraft.  I have written a commentary for Forbes here.