The Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve Command are experiencing some growing pains as a result of Future Total Force initiatives, said Lt. Gen. John A. Bradley, AFRC chief. However, he added, the end result will be worth it. Bradley told a Capitol Hill seminar, “The Future Total Force is going to help us organize our force, [providing] the right mixtures of missions at the right levels.” Some of the moves are “painful,” with wing and mission changes affecting ANG and AFRC members who can’t just pack up and leave a community. Bradely said the two reserve components must have the right numbers of aircraft on each base to be economical. Some elements of the Air National Guard have expressed deep reservations about the plan.
In the face of Chinese war plans to disrupt U.S. command-and-control networks in the event of a conflict, the Air Force needs to focus less on its “connect everything” efforts and prepare its combat aviators to fight without a constant connection to higher-ups, according to a new report from AFA’s…