Could the Air Force’s decision to divest its brand-new fleet of Global Hawk Block 30 remotely piloted aircraft in Fiscal 2013 be the first step toward a partial shift in the intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance mission from the Air Force to the Navy? That’s a question one defense analyst is posing. After all, the Navy is “significantly increasing its investment in two major surveillance aircraft . . . moving ahead with major purchases of about 115 P-8 maritime radar surveillance [air]planes and 68 or more unmanned Broad Area Maritime Surveillance [air]craft derived from Global Hawk,” wrote Rebecca Grant, president of IRIS Independent Research, in a new white paper issued on May 1. On the other hand, the Air Force is “gutting its capabilities for long-endurance surveillance,” she wrote. Grant wonders why. “Maybe the Air Force can step back from being the primary ISR provider, but we don’t see a new joint concept of [operations] yet to provide a replacement for that,” she stated during a presentation on this topic at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., that same day.
As Air Force leaders consider concepts of operations for Collaborative Combat Aircraft, sustainment in the field—and easing that support by using standard parts and limiting variants—should be a key consideration, according to a new study from AFA's Mitchell Institute of Aerospace Studies.