General james holmes, commander of air combat command, discussed the future of the u. S. Air force during a virtual conversation with the Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies. This is an hour. Good afternoon, everyone. Warm welcome to all of you. Im dave deptula, dean of the institute for Aerospace Studies and would like that thank air combat command general commander james holmes for joining us today. After so many years of service and in key positions throughout our air force, needs little introduction. Simply summarize by saying hes excelled in operational, staff and academic purchase suits at every level, and as a result, hes brought an unsurpassed degree of competence to his current job. As commander of air combat command hes responsible for organizing, training and equipping air force aerospace cyber and Intelligence Forces for Rapid Deployment and employment. With that mobile, id like to turn it observer ver to you to what are at the top of your priority lists these days especially when it comes to operational employment are Aerospace Assets in key regions around the globe. So im shaking the stick over to you. Thanks, dave. Thanks for the kind words and hello, everybody. Thanks for spending some time with the Mitchell Institute and thanks for giving me a chance to talk to you a little bit. Now, as dave pointed out, air combat command is primarily and organized training and equipment command. Our job primarily is present combatready forces through the air forces other service component. Whether those components are att, number of air forces or presented them through another com. As result pretty ready and focused a lot of the time. So at the top of my list right now has been our efforts to mitigate the impact of covid19 on our compaapabilities and peo and att airmen and families responded very, very well and able to maintain our capability and capacity through that. And very interested right now also, our act headquarters, we wear a page that says, people first, Mission Always kind of one of our core beliefs. So were very focused right now on the air force and air combat command staffers to dig into Racial Disparity in our force. And to address the things that are keeping our airmen from being able to live their best lives and contribute to our mission. Then were working with Headquarters Air force primarily with the Lieutenant General kelly, you know also been nominated and not confirmed but nominated by the president to take my place as att commander. In his role, we are work fing t fine tune and present a new air force and present a system and talk more about it in some of the questions. So those three things are at the top of our plate every day. Kind of the next thing as we work through this season of budgets where on the hill theyre marking on the 21 file, and osd building the 22 pom and looking at what i describe as kind of a funding and strategy gap where the air force finds itself in a place where were not big enough to meet the cocoms requirements spelled out by our National Security strategy, and then perhaps too big for the budgeting we have. So we struggle to have enough people, capability and enough time to be able to keep all of our force modernized, keep up with the stress and ready enough to go fight with pure adversaries. Then finally, when you look at what our job is trying to set priorities as we go forward, we know that theres talk about what will happen to the Defense Budgets as we go forward. Both the investments that weve made in stimulus through covid, and Election Year coming up. What will happen to budgets as we go forward . We prioritize our work and efforts trying to balance those things with the things the airs provides to join force nobody else does. Two primary things. One, control the air and space in the department of the air force and the electromagnetic spectrum so the joint force has preem freedom to operate and act across all capabilities and, two, to provide the lions share of the c2 making global and theater joint air power use possible. Those are the things on the top of our plate i think weve got questions allow me to expand on those. Thanks. Mobile, excellent overview. Lets dig a little deeper into some of these issues. When you and i were far younger, we had the privilege of flying in an air force far larger. General goldstein summarized ready well when he talks about the air force that went to desert storm versus the one on todays flight lines. Which is arguably answering a far higher demand signal across numerous concurrent fronts with less than half the forces. As commander spoo eer responsib meeting these demand, could you give us insights just how this challenge is affecting air combat command and thoughts on a way to deal with it . Well, you know, when you talk about a smaller force, with increasing demand, i agree thats true. It drive as collision for att forces between preparation for combat with pure adversaries, having the right capabilities, the right modernization and having the right readiness to be able to square off with a capable pure adversary, and then the president , competition deterrence around the world every day so we dont have to fight. Every day theres a collision between those two things. Training time to be competent in enough and providing the president with cocoms around the world to compete and deter in the National Security strategy spells out pure adversaries with security, rogue nations, iran, north korea, who are testing our boundaries now. And then extremist organizations in our continuing battle with isis, issel and other places and our efforts to reach a lasting solution to the problems in afghanistan. So you have that coalition between those two things. And then you have a collision between operating to do those things and modernization and readiness. So the goal and the way we try to work through that is to try to find predictable white space, we call it. White space on the calendar. Got a calendar what youll do next year, got things written in for your vacation and for work trips and all youre doing. The white space on there is when you rest and recuperate and prepare. You want predictable white space for all of our units, whether theyre tradition archiation units or cyber and isr analysts and the forces that are working every day. And to do that, then, you need time, but you also need the training resources. Whether thats in a live or a virtual, in a simulator, in a constructive environment using a commuter to generate things to bridge in between. Investment on emitters to simulate, advance integrated air defenses on air threats that are realistic compared to the threat and able to put a whole command system together whether in environment places like the National Test to Training Range out in nevada, or up in jay park in alaska or whether that Center Simulator environment or, again, whether that is, those two things that pull that together. We need the white space to train and the right Training System to train in and we think this news for presentation concept that were socializing with the joint staff will help us to do that. I say, new. Weve had an extraditionary force, af structure that debuted, dave and others put together and worked hard on. A couple of things that never brought forward kept us from exercising it. One of them is having a command and control Element Incorporated with it to be able to take them forward as a group. And employ them together. Then another one is having the kind of builtin white space to go with it. Were working on presenting a model taking deployable air force forces breaking into six bins on 36month schedule. So wed be able to both present forces for the rotational requirements, cocoms need and have High Readiness forces to present and Response Force and immediate Response Force that the secretary of defense and the president deems, while ensuring the white space to train in between those, because you train up for that Response Force or immediate Response Force mission you might have to go against a pure adversary. And off that period you have to train for specific rotational mission, which might be cast over afghanistan instead. And then all of that depends on the people and retention. How you keep people around to do that. We take this force presentation, force Generation Model a key to doing that. Providing predictability for our folks. Provides guaranteed time at home for white space, and thats certainly a part, that tempo is certainly a part of the problems people face in keeping them around but doesnt answer all of it, either. Also we work on things like limited number of boots that people make during a career, because that uncertainty and the drive of having to pick up and move, it drives pressure on families. Particularly on spouses. And employment opportunities, and Building Careers of their own, and on the Education Opportunities for their children. So all of the Service Chiefs and Service Secretaries have been working to egg work with the st to improve. Thanks. Thanks for that very comprehensive answer that clearly, its much more than just the concerns restricted to air and sounds like acc under your leadership has really wrapped your arms around that in moves into the future. So lets talk a little bit about resources in the future environment, and as youre well aware, the 2020s are really make or break for aircraft recapitalization. Systems are either going to be replaced or missions are going to have to sunset. The challenges the amfavorses wh the f15 represents tip of the iceberg in this regard. You alluded to it. Given the coronavirus funding, the Defense Budgets are expected to decline. Which makes an already difficult recapitalization effort even more challenging. So whats your take on this situation . Mobile, when you speak to leaders on capitol hill and beyond, how do you explain to them the need for the air force to remain committed to its key modernization goals . Thanks, dave, and, you know, i go back to where i started that were too small for the global requirement, but in some ways maybe too big for the budget we have. Go back look at the root cause of the problem, prior years to 1990, air force bought about 200 airplanes a year to replace old airplanes and able to do that in realtime. Then for the 20 years after that, we bought about 20 Fighter Aircraft a year if you along across that timeline. That drove us into an 18 force the society talked about. If were going to transition that 18 force into new ideas, were proud of the work that the air force war fighting Integration Center has done along with the war society mass comes to come up with a vision and new approach what it will take to counter adversaries in new ways. We watched china and russia spend the time since desert storm watching what we do and coming up with new approaches to be able to counter our strengths, take advantage of our weaknesses. Our folked tried to do the same with them. Work harder, not counter with them and transform into new approaches. The hard part for that is what you led into. Its finding the money to make the transformation wehile you ty to keep doing what youre doing and do it in a different way. If the key problem is were in a battle of longrange fights with pure adversaries trying to keep us as arms length and keep us distant, were trying to find and destroy mobile agile intelligent hard to find targets that are mobile antisatellite systems, mobile direct and energy systems, mobile longrange fires and mobile integrated air defenses and in many cases theyre shooting at fortune airfields, predictable and easy to find. That means we will rely on things like advanced Battle Management system as part of the joint control to help us close that kill chain, to be able to find those targets and be able to have a credible ability to take them out, and that means that we have to invest in new things. Whether thats networks and connectivity with data, you know, at the center of it . And may come back and talk about jcd2 and hms in a little bit. Whether centers, platforms and the weapons it will take to do that were stuck in this collision between capacity and modernization. Then as we look at rising costs maintaining capabilities in those 30yearold systems that we have, each one of them has a different problem that were working. We have miracle workers and air force Materiel Command dedicated their lives and theres never been an air force in the histories of the world that can get at much out of the 18 platforms as were able to do because of them, but if you look at the f22, the folk es and primary problem there is having enough engines to meet our requirements as weve been flying the f22 more than predicted. F15, talked about fuselage and canopy worn out extended through their service life and have to be replaced which means taking the airplane apart. A10, wings, able to replace the wings on the airplane to continue for a longer service life. For the f16, they have service life left on them, but neat a lot of modernization to be useful. Against current stress. And so its a lot of depo input to get that modernization, manage against requirements forum and for the f35, airplane is maturing. Happy with the aircraft we have at hill. Working through how to figure out sustaining that airplane for a the longterm and at a reasonable cost and the next platform, engine available a ability and depo time it takes to keep the aging airplanes flying. So thats a long story to get to that we cant afford not to continue to invest in that sustainment as well. So we have a collision between sustainment and modernization and between ops utilization and modernization, and the bottom line is that, you know, as you led me into here, i have a hard time figuring out how were going to do that, and if were required to hold on to everything that we have through that process, particularly if the budgets go down. So we appreciate the Work Congress is doing to recognize our requirements. They set forwards and manned daits and mdaas saying the air force has to have 2000 fighters and the equivalent of that across the board, and if you look at those numbers it comes really close to the 38 squadrons the air force should need. Problem is, how do we afford that air force at the budget level given . Not getting the money to afford that we have to make hard choices together with the congress and the department of defense over the next years. Yes, sir. And i think you know this. One of the things were trying to help you with here at Mitchell Institute. To make the decisionmakers on the other side of the Potomac River understand that you can do one of two things. You can either provide the resources that support the needs of the National Defense strategy, or change the expectations of the National Defense strategy. But, you know, its a its a real challenge, and thank you for laying that out. As clearly as you did. Well continue to plug away and attempting to raise awareness of the importance of modernizing our forces to be able to deal with what it is the leadership of the nation wants the air force to do. So lets move on a bit. If youd let me yeah . If youd let me, id add one more thing to that. Which is i kind of went through the traditional things you expect an att commander to speak about. Look at the kcompetition with china, russia, iran, north korea. The primary tool used in information warfare. Certainly a military component to that information warfare. Russia and china use military forces to drive points, drive influence, to drive achieving their goals without combat, but the primary tool is information warfare, and so as we move forward as a nation we have to look at the investment there. How much should be invested in the department of defense for that information, warfare. What should be invested in other places. Covid highlights new challenges to the National Security strategy to take into account. So even with competition for National Security dollars and with the stimulus driving that down, i think we can all sort of expect to hear people talk about with some justification our National Security dollars shouldnt all be spent in the department of defense either. There are a variety of information and pandemics and other things we have to work through how to spread these resources across. Thanks. Well, now, for what its worth, i applaud that perspective and interesting to know when you look at the four security pillars of the United States is based on. Diplomacy, information, the military and the economic element, the only one that does not have a cabinetlevel agency assigned to it is information. So i think your thoughts are spoton in that regard and the nation needs to move out in that respect. Now, one of the things changing the, the subject a bit but fundamental to our aerospace nation, if you will, is the whole issue of training. Training pilots. And general holmes, you just released a groundbreaking concept to revitalize how the air force should be training its pilots. Talk about your project reforge process and the problem youre seeking to solve and houd w do aim to go about doing that . Thanks, dave. Two years ago, i think, i traveled under invitation to israel, and spent time with the israeli air force, and i took five squadron commanders from air combat command along with me. One of the places we visi