Responding to comments made by the Secretary of Defense in April 2008, the United States Air Force began procuring thirty-seven C-12 class aircraft to augment existing intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance systems already operating in the...
This monograph examines the U. S. military capability to defend strategic airlift aircraft against current and projected threats in humanitarian assistance operations. The size of the Joint Task Force (JTF) is frequently restricted by political,...
The attack helicopter battalions within the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) sequentially transition to the AH-64D beginning January 1999 and lasting through May 2002. During this period, air assault operations will be conducted with three...
The United States Air Force (USAF) has developed the ability to strike newly detected targets within minutes by pre-positioning aircraft near potential targets. This “dynamic targeting” process provides responsiveness and flexibility, but it...
As originally conceived in World War I, combat reporting from tactical aircraft has the potential to provide critical information concerning friendly operations and enemy activity to enhance situational awareness, supporting force protection and...
The U.S. Army, after years of false starts and unfilled promises, is about to make good on its commitment to field an unmanned aerial vehicle system at the maneuver brigade level. Called the Shadow 200 tactical UAV (TUAV), it promises to...
This study explores the evolution of technology and the aerial dogfight. It looks at how technology has tried unsuccessfully to eliminate the need for aircraft to engage in close-in aerial combat know as "aerial dogfights," to achieve air...
The need for a Light Attack/Armed Reconnaissance (LAAR) aircraft in counterinsurgency (COIN) is a topic that will often be debated as the conflict in Afghanistan continues and the United States Air Force (USAF) looks at how it can use airpower to...
America’s AF has adopted a strategy that reduces and then modernizes its remaining legacy fleet of combat aircraft. The strategy attempts to free up the necessary funding required to procure a modernized AF with all stealth bombers and fighters....
The USAF Wild Weasel mission was born in 1965 during the Vietnam conflict. The purpose of the mission was to counter the serious radar-directed threats that were decimating the US fighter arsenal. While the current F-4G Wild Weasel aircraft has...
This study investigates the potential improvement in aircraft fleet health resulting from consolidating phase and cannibalization aircraft in the 388th Equipment Maintenance Squadron at Hill Air Force Base, Utah. Never before have these programs...
Over the past thirty years, the attack helicopter has matured as an integral part of the U. S. Army's warfighting team. Operation Desert Storm put the stamp of success on three decades of attack helicopter development, beginning during the Vietnam...
Since the Chief of Staff of the Army, General Eric K. Shinseki, announced to the Army that it would transform or become irrelevant, there has been much discussion and debate as to what direction this transformation should head. The initial tumult...
This monograph discusses the role of the U.S.A.F. F-15E “Strike Eagle” in providing air support for the Army AirLand Battle-Future concept. This advanced and highly capable aircraft has achieved operational capability with two tactical fighter...
Given that half of the world’s populace currently resides in urban environments, the United States armed forces find themselves at odds with the challenges urban combat imposes. For example, dense terrain features, noncombatants interspersed with...
This thesis investigates the question: Will Close Air Support (CAS) in the year 2000 be as close as CAS today? Today's CAS is dependent upon the ground commander's perception of the situation, and focuses primarily on forces beyond the commander's...
F-16 aircraft maintenance metrics and F-16 unit mishaps are examined in an effort to determine if there is a correlation between the two sets of data. Using active duty units from 2000-2008, nine common U.S. Air Force maintenance metrics of similar...
Current U.S. Air Force doctrine promotes offensive air operations as the primary means of gaining air superiority and then exploiting that success by attacking enemy forces/LOCs/logistics, etc. on the ground. Such reliance on the offense begs the...
In 1961, the new Secretary of Defense, Robert McNamara directed a joint aircraft acquisition program called the TFX, which would produce the first common aerial platform for multiple services. The resulting drama, subterfuge and resistance by the...
This study examines the ability of the upgraded A-10 to effectively support the Army’s interim force in the year 2010. The A-10A Thunderbolt II is the first and only USAF aircraft specifically designed to provide close air support to friendly...