The Mitchell Institute’s Aerospace Nation Podcast

Operational Imperatives, re-optimizing for great power competition, and a security environment experiencing massive change—these are just a portion of the challenges Dr. Grayson has focused on over the past few years. Given his time at DARPA, the Intelligence Community, and the technology world, Dr. Grayson brings an incredibly unique perspective. With the scale and scope of his portfolio, he is shaping future vectors for air and space power that will be felt for decades. Join us for an insightful discussion with Dr. Grayson to better understand where the Department of the Air Force is headed and why.

The airmen at U.S. Air Forces in Europe and Air Forces Africa are charged with addressing some of the most complex security challenges on the globe. Russia’s aggression in Ukraine has dramatically altered the security calculus in the region and beyond. At the same time, in Africa, the U.S. is facing a complex mix of challenges: everything from violent extremism to the increasing influence of both China and Russia. Airpower is vital to empower smart policy options and strategies in both regions.

The Air Force is at the epicenter of generational transformation. The security environment is posing severe risks the likes of which have not been seen in decades; the force is in the middle of a massive modernization cycle—including two legs of the nuclear triad and NC3; the information age is radically redefining elements of how missions are executed; and the attributes required for individual Airmen to meet mission objectives continue to evolve. All of this is occurring at a time of extreme budget pressure, high COCOM demand, and challenges tied to recruiting and retention. This is a no-fail era for the Air Force. The decisions made in the coming years will radically impact options available to future leaders for decades.

Key Takeaways:

With China engaged in a nuclear break-out, Russia upgrading its nuclear capabilities, plus Iran and North Korea aggressively pursuing their nuclear ambitions—a credible, capable, and safe U.S. nuclear deterrent is more important than ever. The imperatives are clear: to deter adversaries, reassure allies, and provide national leaders with key options whether in peacetime or war. That is why it is so important the U.S. pursue modernization for all three legs of its nuclear triad, including command and control. While present capabilities remain viable, their advanced age and the evolution of the threat environment demand new solutions. This is especially true for the Air Force’s intercontinental ballistic missile and bomber legs of the triad. Lt Gen Gebara is a key defense leader in this effort.

Brig Gen Michael “Jekyll” Winkler, USAF (Ret.), the Deputy Director for Air and Cyberspace Operations of the Pacific Air Forces, and Mitchell's J. Michael Dahm explore how the Department of Defense and Congress can and must prepare the Air Force to fight from their forward air bases to generate combat effects while under attack.

Link to the report

The Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies invites you to enjoy our Aerospace Nation with Gen Kenneth S. Wilsbach, Commander, Air Combat Command.

Whether discussing missions like air superiority, air battle management, electromagnetic spectrum operations, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, or combat search and rescue—the airmen of ACC execute missions that are foundational to modern warfare. Ask any combatant commander and they want more ACC airpower. However, years of budget pressures and non-stop operational deployments have yielded a force that is stretched thin. This decade marks a major wave of modernization to reset units throughout ACC, with many of these investments combining long standing tenets of air warfare with new realities of the information age. Pair those realities with a burgeoning threat environment and it is clear General Wilsbach and his team are looking at a distinct number of challenges and opportunities. What’s beyond certainty is that ACC will be an essential actor in any operation today and tomorrow.

Listen to our thought-provoking conversation with one of America’s top air commanders to learn where ACC is today and where it’s going in the future.

The Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies invites you to enjoy our Schriever Spacepower Series with Lt Gen David N. Miller, Jr., Commander, Space Operations Command, United States Space Force.

As part of Great Power Competition, the United States today confronts numerous threats to our space capabilities and infrastructure. China has demonstrated the ability to strike ground sites, command and control networks, and satellites in orbit. Ensuring the Space Force is postured for this operational reality is the responsibility of the Space Operations Command (SpOC) under the command of Lt Gen David “Rock” Miller, Jr.

Listen to our event audio for an insightful discussion with Lt Gen Miller about SpOC priorities and current efforts to meet and overcome emerging challenges to our space superiority.

It’s no secret: whether considering the relative scale of Russia’s military power or confining rules of engagement, Ukraine’s fight to reclaim territory is challenging. Lt Gen David A. Deptula, USAF (Ret.), Dean of the Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies, and co-author Dr. Christopher Bowie released a new solution-oriented report on the conflict that includes a comprehensive, integrated approach for Ukraine to achieve air superiority. As part of this discussion, Gen Philip M. Breedlove, USAF (Ret.), the 17th Supreme Allied Commander Europe of NATO Allied Command Operations; Gen Tod Wolters, USAF (Ret.), the 19th Supreme Allied Commander Europe of NATO Allied Command Operations; and Gen Jeffrey Harrigian, USAF (Ret.), former Commander of U.S. Air Forces in Europe and U.S. Air Forces Africa, also offered their perspectives..

The report is informed by a recent trip Lt Gen Deptula took to Ukraine to help advise members of their military leadership team. Topics discussed center around strategy and concepts of operation, especially through an airpower lens. A largely ground-centric approach to the conflict has yielded a brutal attrition fight—one that numerically favors Russia. Airpower could provide Ukraine with the edge it needs to gain an advantage over the Russians, break through their front lines, and change the course of the war. Given what is at stake in this fight—especially with China watching—it is crucial to consider alternate courses of action.

With their combined decades of experience and given their unique perspectives on Ukraine, the conversation between Lt Gen Deptula, Gen Breedlove, Gen Harrigian, and Dr. Bowie was incredibly thought-provoking, insightful, and direct. Bottom line, it is time to start focusing on what it looks like to win, and not just avoid losing day-by-day.