From “Truck” To “It” Machines: Speaking to reporters at the Dubai Air Show, retired Gen. Ronald Fogleman, former US Air Force Chief of Staff, praised the evolution in thinking about unmanned aerial vehicles, which he said had once been treated like “trucks.” Now, he said, UAV capability to provide real-time combat intel is “beyond our expectations.” According to a news report by the Shephard Group, Fogleman emphasized that UAV technology has not been fully exploited and that ever more UAVs will employ “smart, small munitions and even energy weapons.” (Read our article “Will We Have an Unmanned Armada? Here.)
The Air Force is seeking funding to let its pilots fly a little more than 1.1 million hours in fiscal 2027, which would be the most in about four years. But even if Airmen actually do fly all 1.1 million hours, it would still be short of the 1.3 million…