One of the US officials leading air operations in Southwest Asia, Air Force Maj. Gen. David Edgington, told reporters in Iraq this weekend that airstrikes are down from earlier this year when the number of sorties was running ahead compared to a year ago. He said that earlier data showed a “marked increase, about four times” in the number of weapons dropped, but that data for the past month has shown a “marked decrease.” He attributed the drop to the overall improvement in the security situation recently noted by senior US Central Command officials. Edgington said: “We are having less calls for [air] kinetic operations. We are still there,” meaning the air component continues to maintain combat air patrols should ground commanders call for air strikes. (Transcript with link to video clips)
The rate of building B-21 bombers would speed up if the fiscal 2026 defense budget passes. But it remains unclear how much capacity would be added, and whether the Air Force would simply build the bombers faster, or buy more.