According to Joint Forces Command officials, a program they created a year ago to place military members with a service different from their own at the three-star warfighting component level is paying off. In fact, they claim it has gotten “rave reviews.” JFCOM manpower official Charles Ridley explains that if USAF’s 12th Air Force needs an intelligence officer, the Joint Manpower Exchange Program may send the Southern Command component a Navy officer. So far, JMEP has 30 positions to work with and has filled 28. Officials expect to fill the last two slots by early October.
The rate of building B-21 bombers would speed up if the fiscal 2026 defense budget passes. But it remains unclear how much capacity would be added, and whether the Air Force would simply build the bombers faster, or buy more.
