USAF’s Andersen AFB, Guam, will generate 80 aircraft, including B-2 and B-52 bombers; F-15C, F-15E, and F-16CJ fighters; E-3 AWACS command and control aircraft; and KC-10 and KC-135 tankers, to conduct sorties for a variety of simulated events as part of Valiant Shield 2006. Another nearly 200 will fly off the USS Kitty Hawk, USS Ronald Reagan, and USS Abraham Lincoln. USAF Lt. Col. Colin Wright says his 90th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron will lead the F-15 force as they perform maritime interdiction, which he calls “an emerging skill set for F-15Es.”
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.
