Three days after top military leaders departed the Air and Space Force Association’s February conference in Colorado, the U.S. and Israel struck Iran, launching Operation Epic Fury. Now, over six months later, service officials are scheduled to gather again outside Washington, D.C., to outline their top budget priorities as the unresolved conflict continues.
The Air and Space Force Association’s Air, Space & Cyber conference arrives as the services advance major acquisition programs amid funding uncertainty on Capitol Hill. These initiatives include fielding Collaborative Combat Aircraft, developing the Sentinel Intercontinental Ballistic Missile, accelerating B-21 bomber production, demonstrating progress on the future F-47 fighter jet, and showcasing key components of the Golden Dome missile defense system. In addition to program updates, military and defense industry leaders will discuss the ongoing conflict.
While top service leaders will undoubtedly focus on Iran war strategy, defense analysts note significant unanswered questions regarding modernization for future conflicts.
“I expect we will hear a great deal about the war in Iran and lessons learned,” said Kelly Greico, a senior fellow at the Stimson Center. “However, the critical question is what the actual modernization priorities of this leadership team are. Last time, we heard much about readiness, but less emphasis on where the Air Force is heading in terms of preparing for the future fight.”
Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Dan Caine is scheduled to address the conference, as partisan gridlock has jeopardized top service programs and funding priorities—including F-35 procurement, crucial munitions, and the military-wide Golden Dome missile defense program. At the NDIA Emerging Technologies Conference on Wednesday, Caine pushed for fully funding the administration’s $1 trillion-plus proposal.
“We need $1.5 trillion, and the configuration of that budget is a political decision for policymakers,” Caine said. “But we support it and need that capital to ensure the deals the department is negotiating with a wide range of industry members are sustainable.”
Caine’s pitch follows lawmakers scaling back the administration’s $350 billion in requested reconciliation funds to just $60 billion for Iran war operations. In April, Gen. Kenneth Wilsbach, the Air Force’s top uniformed leader, told lawmakers the service would need supplemental funding to replace aircraft lost during Operation Epic Fury.
After dozens of MQ-9 Reaper drones were destroyed in the fight with Iran, the service is likely to announce plans to develop and purchase replacements under its Massed Modular Aircraft program, known as MMA. Service officials during a Pentagon roundtable last week hinted that Air Force Secretary Troy Meink would provide updates on the effort.
“I expect at AFA that he will probably have comments on his vision for the MMA, including numbers and timeline, but he has made it clear that his expectation is we need to bring it to the left,” Lt. Gen. Christopher J. Niemi, the Air Force’s chief modernization officer, told reporters.
Guetlein, the Golden Dome director, is also scheduled to speak at the conference.
Last month, the four-star Space Force general warned that the sprawling, military-wide missile defense project was in peril. About 97 percent of the program’s $17.5 billion request this year was based on reconciliation funding. He is scheduled to appear on a panel titled “Defending the Homeland: Making Golden Dome a Reality” alongside Sen. Deb Fischer, R-Neb., and Gen. Gregory M. Guillot, the head of U.S. Northern Command.
Amid the budget uncertainty, Greico said it is a tall order for the Air and Space Force to accomplish all its goals.
“The Air and Space Forces, together, their budget is, to me, not sustainable,” Greico said. “Fundamentally, it does not make sense how they can do everything they want to do.”