The Mitchell Institute’s Aerospace Nation Podcast

As the newest combatant command, U.S. Space Command must rapidly advance and integrate spacepower into real world operations, and Maj. Gen. Samuel “Bull” Keener is leading the charge to do just that. He leads efforts with allies and partners to plan, execute, and integrate military spacepower into multi-domain global operations to deter aggression, defend national interests, and when necessary, defeat threats. Join us for this can’t-miss Schriever Spacepower Series to hear first-hand how spacepower is evolving to meet emerging challenges.

Lt. Gen. Dennis Bythewood sits at the nexus between the Space Force and U.S. Space Command. He leads thousands of joint and combined personnel across 50 tactical units with the purpose of protecting and defending our interests in space. Join this upcoming Schriever Spacepower Series to hear about the accomplishments and ongoing efforts of this key component command.

Allowing adversaries to operate from operational sanctuaries is a losing proposition. A war-winning strategy for the U.S. military must involve applying long-range penetrating airpower to hold targets at risk – anytime, anywhere. This includes an adversary’s ability to launch air and missile salvos that could cripple U.S. operations. However, decades of force cuts and deferred modernization have reduced the Air Force’s combat capacity to the point where it cannot simultaneously deter nuclear attacks, defend the U.S. homeland, and defeat adversary aggression at acceptable levels of risk. New, long-range stealthy bombers and fighters that can deny sanctuaries to adversary forces wherever they are located are required at scale. A less-capable force cannot achieve peace through strength or win should deterrence fail. This is a strategic choice for the nation, not just the Air Force. The authors examine this topic and solutions with guest, Gen. Tim Ray, USAF (Ret.), former Commander of Air Force Global Strike Command.

Join the Mitchell Institute as Col. Jen “Boots” Reeves, USAF (Ret.) releases her latest policy paper outlining why space superiority is foundational to America’s ability to fight and win. Achieving this will demand that the other services support the Space Force and Space Command, which is a departure from the traditional notion of spacepower acting to empower terrestrial actions. This necessary evolution has major implications when it comes to strategy, operational concepts, command relations, technology investments, and basic warfighting attitudes. Joining the discussion is Maj. Gen. Brook “Tank” Leonard, USAF (Ret.), the inaugural Chief of Staff of U.S. Space Command. This is a must see deep-dive on the institutional reforms, operational changes, cultural shifts, and new technologies required to achieve space superiority through cross-domain operations.

The National Reconnaissance Office is leading one of the most ambitious architectural transformations in intelligence history. In the last two years, the NRO has deployed more than 200 satellites. This increases both mission performance and architectural resilience in the face of growing threats around the world. As the Deputy Director of the NRO and Commander of the Space Force Element to the NRO, Maj. Gen. Christopher Povak serves two vital roles in securing access to vital space-based intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance data. Join the Mitchell Institute’s discussion with Gen Povak for an informative look at dramatic transformation occurring within the NRO.

U.S. Air Force airlift stands as the foundation for any successful military operation, whether in times of peace or war. After decades of hard use, the current airlift enterprise is small, old, and increasingly stretched too thin amidst surging demand. Emerging operational concepts, the sheer expanse of the Indo-Pacific theater, and continued high demand elsewhere around the globe places greater stress on this strained mission. The Department of War and the Air Force must expand and sustain the capacities and readiness of the airlift system. This isn’t a quick fix. It will require years of committed investment in personnel, hardware, and the broader mobility ecosystem.

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.