We missed the hint earlier this month of a significant change within the Air Staff. It was the announcement that the Air Force has tapped Lt. Gen. David Deptula for assignment as the Air Force’s deputy chief of staff for intelligence. (Deptula currently serves as vice commander of Pacific Air Forces and commander of the Kenney Warfighting Center.) As of March, intelligence had been part of the job of the director of intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance within the DCS for air and space operations.
General Atomics, the maker of one of the Air Force’s first Collaborative Combat Aircraft, has ambitious plans for its family of semi-autonomous drones beyond the FQ-42, including a flying-wing aircraft capable of carrying out both reconnaissance and strike missions. Meanwhile, the Air Force Research Laboratory announced a new program to…