Axe the Air Force?

First, let me preface my opinion with this history. I come from a tradition of military service in my family. Grandfathers; Navy & Marines, Father; Marine, Uncle; Air Force, Cousins; Army, Navy, Air Force, Brother; Army, Myself; Army and a little Navy. I’m not here to rag on the Air Force and their right to be, at all. But there’s some thoughtful discussion about whether they should exist at all.

Robert Farley over on the American Prospect suggests that the Air Force (AF) unneeded for what it wants to do, and redundant at what it does best. He states that what the AF wants to be a strategic bomber and air superiority force, and the Cold War era that demanded that kind of program isn’t a problem anymore. He also says that the one thing the AF is really good at, but doesn’t really like to do, is tactical close air support. And that can be best handed back to the Army, Navy (and Marines).

The piece is a good argument if he hadn’t left out a bunch of information. There’s an implied suggestion that the armed forces don’t play well together, and say that the Army would be better served by their own organic tactical fighters. I must disagree here; I’ve worked with the AF as a ground spotter/laser designator when I was in the Army. We had no problem talking to each other, and our equipment was compatible, and I witnessed no redundancy. I spotted the targets, pulled the trigger on the laser, the A-10 pilot spotted the mark and he lit the target up. We were all a team, but we were experts in what we do. The Army is good at picking out baddies on the battlefield and the Air Force is experts on killing them from the air.

I can think of one huge part of the AF that they’ve mastered for awhile now. MAC, Military Airlift Command is huge, but not as sexy as all the Zoomie Boomie branches of the AF. Now I think both SAC and MAC are blended into AMC (Air Mobility Command). They move a lot of freight, people and fuel around the world. I can see keeping the AF around just for that task alone.

So I disagree with Farley’s assessment of why the AF isn’t needed. Sure, there’s going to be some redundancy and waste, but there’s probably just as much in any other branch and I don’t feel the volume of waste is going to get any smaller by adding onto the Army and Navy. We’re still going to need long range heavy bombers. Sure, not for bombing grass shacks and goat herders, but we still rank only 3rd for military personnel in the world behind China & Russia. Both those nations are nuclear powerhouses they aren’t always our bosom buddies. I feel there still needs to be a deterrence factor in this world. Strategic bombers may not win hearts and minds, but they sure make your foes think twice about biting you.

Plus there’s plenty of things that I think that is developing that the AF would be good at managing; Space Defense, Robotic Air Power, Cyber Defense, Box Lunch Production … damn, I miss those little white boxes sometimes. But the one BIG reason not to disband the Air Force is that I have my teenage son about 60% talked-into joining the AF. It’s harder to talk a teenager into being a Marine or Soldier these days, and I get claustrophobic thinking of him all cooped up in a ship somewhere.

Aim High!