The capabilities of both the F-22 Raptor and the F-35 Lightening II are both being taken into account as the services develop the airborne electronic attack “system of systems,” said Maj. Jeff Salem, head of Air Combat Command’s electronic attack requirements shop. (See above) However, although he couldn’t “talk to specifics,” Salem said that the two fighters would be a part of the new AEA landscape. “They will complement each other, but they’re not necessarily tied together,” he added.
U.S. Southern Command recently announced its first lethal strike on a suspected narco-trafficking vessel in two months, and the first under a newly formed permanent counter-cartel task force. The U.S. is also reportedly planning to transfer MQ-9 drones to Colombia to bolster its counter-cartel efforts.