The United States is likely to lose service members by the thousands each day in warfare of the future if the Air Force does not start “replacing its decrepit fleet of tankers” pronto, asserts Loren Thompson of the Lexington Institute. Thompson sees the cargo hauling issue (see above) for the KC-X as one that “could be a show stopper.”
The United States Air Force is flying less than historic norms and funding for acquisition and readiness is on a path to further hollow out this too small and old force to that is incapable of sustaining an enduring combat air campaign.
