Air Education and Training Command will be taking over training efforts for the Air Force’s unmanned combat fleet soon, AETC boss Gen. William Looney said. Air Combat Command is on track to hand off UAV training at Creech AFB, Nev. by Fiscal 2010, Looney confirmed, which he said would ease the burden ACC has endured in running both initial training and combat operations. This has been one of the challenges with training for new capabilities, particularly advanced concept demonstrations that are hurried into combat. “It gets pushed out the door and all of a sudden a [major command] is stuck doing both operations and training,” he added.
The Pentagon released its new National Defense Strategy late Jan. 23, emphasizing a new commitment to the Western Hemisphere. But while that focus garnered most of the headlines, the strategy’s subtle shifts on China raise questions about how the Trump administration aims to leverage U.S. military power in the Indo-Pacific.
