Though achieving 65 combat air patrols of MQ-1 Predator and MQ-9 Reaper remotely piloted aircraft was a worthy goal during the height of the Afghanistan war, Air Combat Command boss Gen. Mike Hostage said he wants out of the commitment. During a meeting with reporters on Sept. 17 at AFA’s 2013 Air and Space Conference, Hostage said he’s “trying to convince” the Pentagon leadership that “65 CAPs is not the force structure we need or can afford.” In an anti-access, area-denial environment, either airplane is “useless,” said Hostage, because they would be shot down promptly.
Gas is king in the vast expanse of the Pacific. And as the Pentagon has sought to build up its capability to deter China, the Department of Defense has undergone a major rethink about how to get fuel to the region. At the heart of the effort is the U.S. Transportation…