The Mitchell Institute’s Aerospace Nation Podcast

Ask any pilot about what makes or breaks an aircraft, and they’ll say propulsion. A jet engine is literally the heart of an aircraft. It doesn’t matter how good the airframe’s design is if it doesn’t have the power and thrust to be able to exploit that design. America enjoys a fundamental advantage when it comes to military jet engine technology. That didn’t just happen though, it’s been earned generation after generation by developing the strategy, innovating the technology, and investing in the resources necessary to keep advancing the state of the art. That also means producing it in quantity because we need to see these aircraft operational to understand how to improve that next generation. In this event, we’re going to talk with Steve Russell, Vice President & General Manager, Edison Works at GE Aerospace about America’s propulsion advantage. How we achieved it, where does it stand today, and where do we need to go tomorrow?

The Air Force’s commitment to generating a highly lethal force that is technologically superior, numerically sufficient, and flown by the most well-trained airmen in the world is the bedrock of deterring aggression in times of peace and prevailing in war. However, today’s United States Air Force is the oldest, smallest, and least ready in its history. Facing the severely challenging global threat environment for the next decade and beyond, these shortfalls set the conditions for an existential national security crisis. Moreover, projected underfunding of the Air Force within the future years defense plan (FYDP) will exacerbate the service’s decline. The service’s FY 2025 budget request sought to divest 250 aircraft, while only procuring 91. The FY 2026 request seeks to divest 340 aircraft, while only acquiring 76. Anemic funding for operations and maintenance will only advance the downward trajectory of force readiness, taking already historic lows to levels once thought unfathomable. It is essential that the Trump administration and Congress reverse the service’s decline in a capacity, capability, and readiness. The solution demands increasing the Air Force budget, while also shifting internal service funds from Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation (RDT&E) into both procurement and operations and maintenance (O&M) accounts specifically aimed at re-establishing readiness to prevail in peer conflict. The Air Force’s innovative capabilities are only relevant if procured in operationally significant quantities and flown by an exceptionally well-trained force. If the declines in the U.S. Air Force are excused or ignored, the human and material losses we will suffer in the next major conflict risk being significant. Defeat is a very real possibility. That is a price the nation cannot afford.

Authored by Brig. Gen. Houston Cantwell, USAF (Ret.), Senior Resident Fellow for Airpower Studies Russia and China have spent the past three decades developing and fielding advanced weapons capable of striking the U.S. homeland—this includes nuclear and non-nuclear missiles. Military and civilian targets are more vulnerable to aerial attack than ever before. This is a major driver behind Golden Dome. A Russian aircraft launching a hypersonic missile could strike New York or Washington D.C. in less than 60 minutes. Advanced cruise missiles—which are available in high numbers and at a low cost—can transit thousands of miles, evade existing radars, fly unpredictable flight paths, and deliver disastrous effects. The current devastation of major Ukrainian cities serves as a warning of what the United States could face in a future conflict. Nowhere is the country’s exposure to attack more acute than from its Arctic approaches—the most direct corridor through which both Russia and China could strike the United States.  America has dealt with similar threats before. The Cold War saw the United States install and operate extensive arrays of early warning systems to ensure advanced detection of Soviet bomber aircraft across the Arctic region. However, those systems have aged out. U.S. Arctic domain awareness capabilities and capacity are woefully insufficient to meet today’s threats. A modern, effective enterprise must detect, track, and analyze military movements and other activities in real-time by using a variety of air, surface, and space sensors that collect and share information from multiple domains. It is time for the nation to rebuild its northern tier defenses.

It’s no secret that China is America’s national security pacing threat. Join us to learn more about airpower and the Pacific theater with Gen. Kevin Schneider, Commander, Pacific Air Forces; and Air Component Commander, U.S. Indo-Pacific Command. He and his team are responsible for Air Force activities spread over half the globe in a command that supports more than 46,000 Airmen serving principally in Japan, South Korea, Hawaii, Alaska and Guam. The challenges he and his team work every day are hugely consequential.

Authored by J. Michael Dahm, Senior Fellow for Aerospace and China Studies China’s informationized warfighting strategies are specifically designed to counter America’s networked approach to warfare. This includes breaking long-range kill chains and denying penetrating strikes their highly networked reach-back connectivity. Given these vulnerabilities, it is crucial that the Air Force pursue disaggregated collaborative air operations (DCAO) as an operational concept that sidesteps these adversary strategies to dominate the battlespace information environment. DCAO centers upon combat air forces that operate as locally networked formations, that can operate even when disconnected from broader networks. The concept relies upon a force of fifth- and sixth-generation aircraft, plus collaborative combat aircraft, that can penetrate adversary air defenses, independently sense, coordinate, and execute individual actions at the tactical edge of the battlespace. This builds upon the proven U.S. Air Force employment of effects-based operations (EBO) and parallel warfare. Just as precision weapons and stealth aircraft enabled effects-based operations in numerous conflicts following the Cold War, fifth-generation and beyond aircraft provide battlespace information dominance capabilities to enable new warfighting concepts that can achieve decisive effects forward in highly contested areas.

The Mitchell Institute is pleased to feature Lt. Gen. Andrew J. Gebara as its next Aerospace Nation guest. He is the Deputy Chief of Staff for Strategic Deterrence and Nuclear Integration for the United States Air Force. While nuclear deterrence is always important, the current threat environment heightens the critical nature of this mission. Added to this is the reality that the U.S is in the midst of recapitalizing all three legs of its nuclear triad, plus NC3. In this position, Lt Gen Gebara is responsible for strategic deterrence policy, nuclear oversight, arms control and the Department of Defense foreign clearance program, as well as providing focus on the nuclear deterrence and countering weapons of mass destruction missions for the Air Force. Join us for what will be a most interesting conversation.

Maj. Gen. Jason R. Armagost, a seasoned combat pilot and the Commander of the Eighth Air Force, delves into the storied history and vital role of long-range bombers in national defense. He discusses the evolution of air power through recent conflicts, the advancements of the B-21, and the importance of maintaining effective kill chains. The conversation also highlights the complexities of electronic warfare and the urgent need for modern military technology to adapt to evolving threats, ensuring the U.S. Air Force remains ready and capable.

Listen to the dynamic discussion with Lieutenant General DeAnna Burt, Chief Operations Officer of the United States Space Force, as we explore how the Space Force is driving innovation and integration to stay ahead in today’s contested space domain. From weaving cyber into space architectures and advancing Moving Target Indication (MTI), to sustaining weapon systems, supporting combatant commands, and deepening collaboration with allies and partners – this conversation will highlight how the Space Force is preparing for the future fight.

Integrating space capabilities across Europe and Africa present unique and growing challenges in two complex regions. As Commander of U.S. Space Forces Europe and Africa, Brig. Gen. Jacob Middleton has the lead role in supporting both U.S. European Command and U.S. Africa Command with space capabilities ranging from intelligence to navigation and communications to space electronic warfare. Join the Mitchell Institute for this important conversation with a Space Force warfighter on the leading edge.

The most important element of any military organization is its people. Within the Space Force, the responsible to train and prepare Guardians rests on Space Training and Readiness Command. To learn more about the STARCOM efforts to prepare Guardians for the warfighting domain of space, the Mitchell Institute is excited to host an in-depth discussion with the STARCOM leadership team, Maj Gen Tim Sejba and Chief Master Sergeant Karmann-Monique Pogue. Together, they are shaping the education, training, doctrine, and testing vital to ensuring Guardians have the skills and equipment to overcome any threat.