The U.S. Air Force has spent decades preparing to launch aircraft from bases that, even during major wars, were generally beyond the enemy’s immediate reach.
After 38 days of Operation Epic Fury, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Ken Wilsbach says that assumption is finished.
U.S. Air Force Capt. Nick “Laz” Le Tourneau, pilot and commander of the F-22 Raptor Aerial Demonstration Team, performs an aerial demonstration during the 52nd Annual SUN ‘n FUN Aerospace Expo in Lakeland, Florida, April 14, 2026. Capt. Le Tourneau showcased the unmatched capabilities of the F-22 to the SUN ‘n FUN crowds by performing multiple series of combat maneuvers. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Mary Bowers)
F-22 from Lakeland, Florida Airshow. Taken on 4/19/2026 by 19FortyFive.com
U.S. Air Force Capt. Nick “Laz” Le Tourneau, pilot and commander of the F-22 Raptor Aerial Demonstration Team, performs an aerial demonstration during the 52nd Annual SUN ‘n FUN Aerospace Expo in Lakeland, Florida, April 18, 2026. Capt. Le Tourneau showcased the unmatched capabilities of the F-22 to the SUN ‘n FUN crowds by performing multiple series of combat maneuvers. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Mary Bowers)
“Those days are over,” Wilsbach told the Air & Space Forces Association’s Air, Space & Cyber Conference on September 14. The service, he added, can no longer treat defending its own bases as a “side hustle.”
The numbers behind that warning are substantial. During Epic Fury, roughly 500 aircraft generated 10,000 sorties—more than 250 each day—while the Joint Force struck more than 13,000 military objectives.
Airmen operated through approximately 1,200 “Alarm Reds,” repaired damaged airfields 48 times, and carried out more than 420 reportable explosive-ordnance-disposal operations.
Wilsbach’s prescription was concise: the force must be “ready to fight, built to endure, and integrated to win.”
The Air Force Wants 1,000 New Autonomous Aircraft
Secretary of the Air Force Troy Meink used the same conference to lay out what that force could look like six years from now.
“The threat is changing actually faster than I thought possible when I took this job 18 months ago,” Meink said, citing the accelerating use of artificial intelligence, drones and autonomous systems.
His prediction is that the Air Force will look “radically different” by 2032.
At least 500 Collaborative Combat Aircraft, or CCAs, are planned to be in service by then.
The Air Force has formally named its first two CCA designs, the General Atomics FQ-42 Vengeance and Anduril FQ-44 Fury.
Meink said the names represented “the future of integrated combat capability.”
That program is already moving beyond prototypes. General Atomics announced September 21 that it delivered another FQ-42 Vengeance to Creech Air Force Base, Nevada, on September 18 for continued testing and evaluation.
Company executive Mike Atwood said, “Every week, the Air Force is pushing forward with new and more impressive accomplishments using Vengeance.”
Alongside the CCAs is a cheaper category known as Massed Modular Aircraft, or MMA. Meink said the aircraft will provide “affordable, attritable, long-range combat power” and be produced at scale.
Air Force officials have put the MMA air vehicle at roughly $10 million, excluding sensors and other mission systems.
That’s about half the forecasted cost of a CCA, not including sensors and additional mission equipment.
The aim is to have 100 MMAs in their inventory by 2029, and 500 by 2032.
The Air Force is also aiming for mass in weapons. Its Family of Affordable Mass Munitions is being tailored around “producibility and affordable mass,” and Meink said the service imagines delivering “tens of thousands” by 2030.
U.S. Bases Part and Parcel of Battlefield
But if the bases supporting bigger numbers of aircraft and missiles cannot remain open, these purchases will prove rather futile.
Wilsbach therefore announced a Point Defense Weapon System combining kinetic and non-kinetic defenses.
He also confirmed a dedicated career in point defense. “This new career field will be operational in two years,” he said.
While his airfield was under attack, one F-15E crew chief launched four Strike Eagles. A pair of senior Airmen tracked and destroyed 10 drones directed toward the area.
The most dramatic case throughout was the rescue of the crew of the downed F-15E Dude 44. Wilsbach said the 50-plus-hour effort ultimately involved 176 aircraft.
He said they needed to: “Think about the complexity of that problem.”
Meink has openly noted that the Space Force possesses “on-orbit space control weapons” capable of defending the Joint Force.
But will all of this be affordable? According to Meink, several systems “have outrun the cost curve,” as prices are rising faster than inflation.
Washington Applies Economic Pressure
The U.S. recently expanded its economic campaign against the Islamic Republic also. The White House has said it hopes the move will force Tehran back to the negotiating table.
In August, the Treasury Department announced its “Operation Economic Outcast”, with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent declaring that its extensive sanctions, paired with the continued naval blockade of Iran, were to “sever every economic lifeline” sustaining the regime.
Tensions could soon escalate further in the region.
This week, the US State Department announced a security alert warning Americans in the Middle East that conflict between Saudi Arabia and the Iran-backed Houthi terror group in Yemen could “escalate rapidly.” Over the weekend, U.S. President Donald Trump warned Fox News that he could “blow the entire nation up” if Iran did not heed his demands.
About the Author: Georgia Gilholy
Georgia Gilholy is a journalist based in the United Kingdom who has been published in Newsweek, The Times of Israel, and the Spectator. Gilholy writes about international politics, culture, and education.
