Schwartz pointed out that, amid the wartime operations, Air Mobility Command undertook three major airlift-intensive relief missions. After the Indian Ocean tsunami, Operation Unified Assistance carried, in a very short period, 2,943 passengers and 3,786 short tons of cargo. In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, AMC aircraft hauled 13,717 patients/evacuees and 5,170 tons of relief supplies. After the devastating earthquake in Pakistan, AMC airlifters transported 1,674 passengers and 5,549 short tons of critical relief supplies.
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.