The Chief of the Air Force Reserve, Lt. Gen. John Bradley, told lawmakers at a Senate Armed Services subcommittee hearing that the reserve components do not have the force management tools in place to offset end strength reductions predicated by BRAC 2005 decisions. “In the ’90s when we went through base closure actions, we had some tools—Reserve Transition Assistance Programs—that helped us with people who had served us well and faithfully but just couldn’t move several thousands of miles, or hundreds of miles, to a new unit,” explained Bradley. He added, “We’ll try to accommodate them … but some people just can’t continue.”
As Air Force leaders consider concepts of operations for Collaborative Combat Aircraft, sustainment in the field—and easing that support by using standard parts and limiting variants—should be a key consideration, according to a new study from AFA's Mitchell Institute of Aerospace Studies.