Faster: What U.S. Air Force Modernization Would Look Like Without Space (From Forbes)

If President Trump succeeds in creating a Space Force “separate but equal” from the Air Force, the latter service will lose its satellites, its ballistic missiles and many of its networks.  It will be mainly about “things with wings.”  But once the narrowed focus of Air Force modernization is established, it will become clear the service is buying new planes too slowly.  Its current plans for buying new fighters and tankers would result in most of the air fleet consisting of Cold War airframes in 2030 — half a century after the Cold War ended.  Its plans for recapitalizing radar planes don’t bear fruit until the 2040s.  If the Air Force doesn’t pick up the pace, it will be hard-pressed to stay on an equal footing with the other services in the joint force.  I have written a commentary for Forbes here.