Drones, the Air Littoral, and the Looming Irrelevance of the USAF

[Kirkhill]

No comment. He's right.

Want Drone Dominance? Let the Squad Fail - Modern War Institute

In Ukraine, a soldier is provisioned a low-cost drone from a factory that only began operations in the last twelve months, modifies it with a 3D printed part from a trench, and uses it the next day to spot Russian logistics movements. Meanwhile, the United States Army is just now beginning to...

mwi.westpoint.edu

Get rid of the Bishops.
Try a Presbyterian army.

 

[Colin Parkinson]

Meanwhile:

What does a large drone look like?

Air Force debuts pilotless cargo flights in the Pacific

The service incorporated remotely-operated flights into its massive REFORPAC exercise as it aims to make cargo flights cheaper.

www.defenseone.com

A 767F? A CC330?

In the Canadian context, and assuming friendly skies, is there a role for uncrewed Twotters and Buffalo for supplying hamlets in the territories?

A lot of those small airlines are where your future crop of pilots for large aircraft come from. You might be solving one problem while creating a new one. The pay a lot of these small plane pilots get, is not great, but they do it in the hopes of moving to the big leagues.

 

[Kirkhill]

"It's Like A Flying Aircraft Carrier": US Army's MQ-9A Mothership Unleashes Switchblade Death Swarms That Hunt Targets Anywhere

The recent test flights of the Switchblade 600 loitering munition from a General Atomics’ MQ-9A unmanned aircraft system have unveiled a new frontier in

www.energy-reporters.com

Drones from drones.

Reaper launches Switchblade at Yuma.

 

[Kirkhill]

I debated putting this in the Arty section under Indirect Fires Modernization.
But I think the Army is figuring out what their Division looks like and how they want to fight it.

The Air Force on the other hand....
Defence of Canada
A sub-1,000,000 CAD air vehicle.
Vertical Launch
From the Ground
3000 km range
Autonomous seeker
Multi-Purpose warhead

I don't know that all of those features are in one platform just yet but that certainly seems to be the direction of travel.
Throw in OTH radar, satellites and MQ-9s, and possibly some Bombardier Global Express supplying surveillance and targeting.

What impact on F-35 numbers?
What impact on Continental Defence Corvette capabilities?
What is the influence of an 2,000,000 USD recoverable "booster" that can add 5600 km to your cruise missile range?

Welcome to the era of the ‘affordable’ cruise missile

Long-range cruise missiles were once expensive and in the hands of the few. Now they are being reinvented at a fraction of the cost, disrupting defence in the process.

www.smh.com.au

https://www.nationaldefensemagazine.org/articles/2025/3/20/startup-wins-army-contract-to-develop-vertical-takeoff-cruise-missile

 

[Kirkhill]

Second double post today. Sorry.

 

[FJAG]

I debated putting this in the Arty section under Indirect Fires Modernization.
But I think the Army is figuring out what their Division looks like and how they want to fight it.

The more I see of army modernization, the more I dislike it.

I'm afraid that you are right when you say "their Division." The fact is they have two divisions to construct and so far the second division is being punted down the road. Quite frankly it needs to be seen in serious DoC roles and not merely expensive haulers of sand bags and fire hoses. There are some serious coastal defence and key infrastructure defence issues to be dealt with.

A hint from the army of the vision for their DoC div would be nice. My fear is that there really is no vision or that whatever it is is extremely limited.

 

[daftandbarmy]

The more I see of army modernization, the more I dislike it.

I'm afraid that you are right when you say "their Division." The fact is they have two divisions to construct and so far the second division is being punted down the road. Quite frankly it needs to be seen in serious DoC roles and not merely expensive haulers of sand bags and fire hoses. There are some serious coastal defence and key infrastructure defence issues to be dealt with.

A hint from the army of the vision for their DoC div would be nice. My fear is that there really is no vision or that whatever it is is extremely limited.

I foresee some monumental architecture in their future