Despite comments from top Pentagon officials that the F-22 and F-35 are comparable—and perhaps interchangeable—they are not, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Michael Moseley told defense reporters Thursday in Washington. The best analogy, he said, is to think of the F-22 and F-35 as being akin to the F-15 and F-16, which pioneered the high/low mix 25 years ago. “I believe the two airplanes are complementary. I believe the two airplanes are required,” Moseley asserted. “One is designed for a specific task, the other is designed for a more general task, but together they provide the capability needed for the theater commander.” Both are fifth-generation aircraft—meaning they are stealthy and have advanced electronics—but the high-end F-22’s extreme performance is necessary to clear the skies of enemy fighters, while the F-35 is needed to provide wide coverage of targets in a less costly platform. “Fifth generation capability is the way to survive the new integrated air defense systems,” Moseley said. Stealth, he said, “is very important.”
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr. still “believes” in his mantra of “Accelerate Change or Lose”—and indicated the doctrinal changes it produced when he was Air Force Chief of Staff played a role in the service’s recent response to Iran’s aerial assault on Israel, he…