The Air Force will reduce its total end strength by about 9,900 personnel over the next five fiscal years, including 3,900 active duty members, 5,100 Air National Guardsmen, and 900 Air Force Reservists, said Secretary Michael Donley. Speaking at an Air Force Association-sponsored Air Force breakfast series event in Arlington, Va., Thursday, Donley said leaders strived to “carefully balance” the force to ensure it would be able to meet future requirements while sustaining its operational tempo. “This is an important issue for us as we assess the balance of the Total Force,” said Donley. He added, “While we’ll be smaller together, the active and reserve components will be even more closely integrated going forward.” The Air Force has proposed boosting the number of associations between the active and reserve components from about 100 to at least 115, said Donley. However, he said, “we think there may be more [associations] in the future.”
The Air Force’s Hypersonic Attack Cruise Missile is behind schedule and may significantly overrun its expected cost, which could partially explain why the service is reviving the hypersonic AGM-183 Air-Launched Rapid-Response Weapon.