Tadd Sholtis, a spokesman for Air Combat Command, which oversees the drones and all other Air Force tactical aircraft.

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Currently, the Air Force maintains 16 tactical fighter wings, leaving a shortfall of four wings based on a two-MRC requirement for 20.

CENTERFORSECURITYPOLICY: Section IV: Building a Two-MRC Force for the 21st Century

In theory, the Air Force has many hundreds of tactical aircraft like the F-15E fighter-bomber that might be used to prosecute an air campaign in the Western Pacific, but those planes have limited ranges and thus would be heavily dependent on aerial refueling.

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The Air Force has plans to cut six tactical fighter squadrons, retire 27 older C-5As and 65 C-130s, and divest itself of the entire fleet of 38 C-27s.

CENTERFORSECURITYPOLICY: Section IV: Building a Two-MRC Force for the 21st Century

Artillery was gradually replaced by tactical missiles in the defensive role, but the Air Force was too busy building a fleet of long-range bombers and supersonic fighters to be bothered with ground-based air defenses, while Army troops had a clear need for such defenses.

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The Air Force would make do with 16 active and 12 reserve tactical fighter wings versus a Cold War structure of 24 active and 12 reserve fighter wings.

CENTERFORSECURITYPOLICY: Center for Security Policy | The Measure of a Superpower: A Two Major Regional Contingency Military for the 21st Century | Page: 2