【By Observer Net, Shanmao】
According to a report by the U.S. "Air & Space Forces Magazine" (originally "Air Force Magazine") on July 7 local time, 13 retired U.S. Air Force generals, including six former Air Force Chiefs of Staff and seven other four-star generals, have jointly called on the U.S. Congress to triple the number of F-35A aircraft purchased in fiscal year 2026 for the Air Force, and to restore funding support for the E-7 "Wedgetail" airborne early warning aircraft program, which is currently excluded from the 2026 budget.
According to the 2026 fiscal year budget request document released by the Pentagon at the end of last month, the U.S. Air Force requested the procurement of 24 F-15EX aircraft, while the procurement volume of F-35A dropped from 44 in fiscal year 2025 to 24, which is also lower than the annual "procurement benchmark required for modernizing the fleet," as stated by the U.S. Air Force, which is 72 units.
（Photo: F-35 fighter jets on the production line at Lockheed Martin factory）
Earlier this year, the Pentagon and the U.S. Air Force had already indicated plans to cut the E-7, to be replaced by the future "space-based distributed warning system." Defense Secretary Austin, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Mark Milley, and Special Assistant to the Secretary of Defense John C. Thompson also mentioned during a hearing before the Senate Appropriations Committee last month that the E-2D would fill the gap until the "space-based distributed warning system" becomes operational.
U.S. Air Force E-7A "Wedgetail" airborne early warning aircraft concept art. U.S. Air Force
The six former U.S. Air Force Chiefs of Staff include General Merrill A. McPeak (14th), General Ronald R. Fogleman (15th), General Michael E. Ryan (16th), General John P. Jumper (17th), General T. Michael Moseley (18th), and General Mark A. Welsh III (20th). Additionally, there are retired generals such as General Joseph W. Ralston, former Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and Supreme Allied Commander Europe; General John M. Loh, former Deputy Chief of Staff for the Air Force and Commander of the Air Combat Command; General Ralph E. Eberhart, first Commander of the Northern Command; General Lori J. Robinson, former Commander of the Northern Command; General John D. W. Colley, former Deputy Chief of Staff for the Air Force and Commander of the Air Combat Command; General Herbert J. Carlisle, former Commander of the Air Combat Command; and General Robin Rand, former Commander of the Global Strike Command.
They jointly wrote to House Speaker Johnson, Majority Leader Thune, Democratic Leader Schumer, and Jeffries, along with the Chairmen of the Air Force and Space Forces Association, Bernie Scock (retired major general), Bert Field (retired lieutenant general), and David Deptula (retired major general) of the association's Mitchell Institute, expressing doubts about the Pentagon's proposal to purchase only 24 F-35A aircraft in fiscal year 2026 and cancel the E-7 airborne early warning aircraft program. The letter stated that such military cuts would "unnecessarily" weaken the U.S. military's ability to "deter and win future conflicts when necessary" amid increasing global tensions. Therefore, they urged Congress to approve the full procurement of up to 75 F-35A aircraft and restore full funding support for the E-7 program.
On the other hand, the U.S. House Appropriations Committee and its Defense Subcommittee have taken some "countermeasures" in their proposed 2026 defense budget, including $4.2 billion for the procurement of 42 F-35A aircraft and $500 million for the continued development of the E-7.
However, for these retired generals and the Air Force Association, these measures are still far from sufficient. The U.S. Air Force still needs to continue procuring the initially planned 1,763 F-35A aircraft to fully meet the national defense strategy. This joint letter also cited the recent Israeli air strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities and the rapid acquisition of air superiority over Iran's air defense system as an example, emphasizing the progress made in the TR-3 upgrade of the F-35, stating that through software and hardware upgrades, greater improvements can be made to the F-35. These retired generals also questioned the "temporary solution" of replacing the E-7 with the E-2D, stating that the E-2 "cannot meet the requirements for air command and combat control within the theater," as it was not originally designed for this purpose, whereas the E-7 can perform tasks different from traditional airborne early warning aircraft, making it crucial for dealing with unexpected events related to China. Previously, the U.S. Air Force claimed that future reliance on space-based solutions could work, but these retired generals believe that although they are very confident in the U.S. Space Force's ability to "develop and deploy space-based systems," the engineering challenges remain "daunting," leading to an uncertain deployment schedule. Therefore, they "cautiously request" the deployment of enough E-7s to ensure victory in the next conflict, while praising the foresight of the House Appropriations Subcommittee's bill version, urging all parties to invest actual resources to "deploy the E-7 as soon as possible" according to their requests.
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Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7524916733300261410/
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