The United States Air Force is flying less than historic norms and funding for acquisition and readiness is on a path to further hollow out this too small and old force to that is incapable of sustaining an enduring combat air campaign.
Readiness
Gen. Kenneth S. Wilsbach said the service must improve its readiness in his first public remarks as Air Force Chief of Staff, made during a ceremony marking his ascension to the service’s top job Nov. 18.
Wilsbach Is Air Force’s 24th Chief of Staff By Greg Hadley Gen. Kenneth S. Wilsbach was confirmed as the 24th Air Force Chief of Staff Oct. 30 by unanimous consent. Shortly before, his predecessor, Gen. David W. Allvin, was “clapped”...
A new way of counting the Air Force's fighters gives a better idea of how many are available for action but could undercut how comprehensively they're funded, experts said.
Gen. Kenneth S. Wilsbach swore in as the 24th Chief of Staff of the Air Force on Nov. 3 and kept his focus simple in his first message to Airmen: the service’s first and foremost priority is to “fly and fix so we are ready ...
Getting Air Force readiness back where it needs to be—something new Secretary Troy E. Meink has quickly made one of his top priorities—will take parts, flying hours, maintainers, and new aircraft. But even if the service fills the funding accounts for those things in its ...
Dear Chief, Congratulations on your selection. Just two dozen men have survived the culling to become Chief of Staff. Over the years I’ve interviewed 13 of them, plus perhaps two dozen other members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Here’s...
The Air Force needs a steady infusion of as much as $30 billion a year to reverse the decades of neglect that has diminished its readiness, capacity, and capability to dangerously low levels, according to a new report from the Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies.
Air Combat Command is changing how it measures and tracks readiness for its fleet of aircraft, with a top general saying the focus is on “simplicity” and better articulating what its wings need.
The acting Secretary of the Air Force rescinded a policy that scheduled extra days off for Airmen, Guardians, and their families across the service around 11 federal holidays throughout 2025.
The Air Force would suffer the loss of billions of dollars of buying power under a yearlong Continuing Resolution, only somewhat mitigated by proposals that would allow it to pursue new starts, Lt. Gen. Adrian Spain, deputy chief of staff for operations, told the readiness ...
Retired Air Force Col. John “JV” Venable, a former F-16 pilot and a senior fellow at the Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies, visited with Air & Space Forces Magazine at the AFA Warfare Symposium to talk about the state of readiness across the Air Force, ...

