Despite criticism from the Guard and the governors, senior Air Force officials say they did, in fact, consult, and made the case for eliminating older aircraft and shifting assets to make units more efficient. Jumper told the commissioners, “We don’t consider disagreements with a few adjutant generals out there in the states as a rift between the Air Force and the National Guard.”
An important U.S. Air Force E-3 Sentry AWACS command and control plane was among the aircraft damaged in a March 27 Iranian missile and drone attack on Prince Sultan Air Base, Saudi Arabia, people familiar with the matter told Air & Space Forces Magazine.