US Air Force Desperately Needs Modernization – Air Force Secretary

The US Air Force is facing degradation in military capabilities: the American military air fleet is now smallest the United States has ever had and its aircraft are the oldest that they have ever been – 27 years of age and older – claimed US Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James.

Deborah James added that at the same time the US Air Force is the smallest in terms of people.

"If that's not enough for you, half of our combat Air Forces today, half are not sufficiently ready for that high end fight should we have to fight it."

The official referred to the American military strategy that says that the US military forces have to be able to defeat simultaneously two separate adversaries in two different parts of the world, while at the same time defending the American homeland.

Alas, the US budget constraints do not allow the American armed forces to accomplish such a complex task and to meet the Defense Strategic Guidance, the US Air Force Secretary admitted.

The United States is facing a serious dilemma, whether to rewrite its military strategy or to lift sequester, the official noted, adding that if Washington decided to change the military doctrine America's partnerships would suffer tremendously.

Recently the US has been prompted to cope with three global challenges: the Ukrainian turmoil, Ebola and the security threat posed by the Islamic State.

"And when those three [Ukraine and ISIL and Ebola] happened, everybody around the world was calling for more Air Force, more of the capabilities that we could bring to the table," the US Air Force Secretary claimed.

The US Air Force desperately needs modernization that has been repeatedly postponed after the Afghanistan military campaign. The US should replace its aging military air fleet with new bombers and fighter jets as well as increase the number of personnel by at least 8,800 servicemen, the official pointed out.

According to Deborah Lee James, an extra $10 billion in 2016 Financial Year would have allowed the US Air Force to meet the most pressing needs of American combatant commanders.

However, despite Deborah Lee James is bemoaning the lack of funding, the US military spending remains the highest in the world, reaching up to $640 billion dollars in 2014, according to Peter G. Peterson Foundation data. Remarkably, it exceeded significantly military budgets of China, Russia, Saudi Arabia, France, the United Kingdom, Germany, Japan and India: in fact the US spends more on defense, than the eight countries combined.