【By Observer News, Wang Shipu】According to a report by "Defense News" website on June 28, the latest 2026 plan released by the U.S. Air Force lists the list of fighter jets to be retired, which shows that the U.S. Air Force plans to retire the last 162 A-10 "Thunderbolt II" attack aircraft in the 2026 fiscal year, as part of a plan to cut down a total of 340 active military aircraft.

In addition to all 162 A-10 attack aircraft, the U.S. Air Force also plans to retire 1 B-1B "Lancer" bomber; 62 F-16C/D fighter jets; 1 F-15E "Strike Eagle" fighter jet, 13 F-15C/D "Hawk" fighter jets; 14 C-130H "Hercules" transport aircraft; 3 EC-130H "Compass Call" electronic warfare aircraft; 14 KC-135 Stratotanker refueling aircraft; 11 HH-60G combat search and rescue helicopters; 35 T-1 "Texan" trainer aircraft.

The U.S. Air Force also plans to cancel the E-7 "Wedgetail" early warning aircraft program, due to "major delays" and increased costs as stated by U.S. officials.

A-10's closing Defense News

It is worth noting that the U.S. Air Force's latest 2026 plan for retiring fighter jets came at a time when the Pentagon delayed the release of the 2026 budget plan. Due to the Trump-backed "Big and Beautiful Act", the U.S. defense budget has continued to change, and the military spending for the 2026 fiscal year has been delayed.

This budget requires $21.1 billion in discretionary funding for the Air Force. This includes $18.49 billion in discretionary funding for the Air Force itself, and $2.61 billion in discretionary funding for the Space Force.

It is worth noting that the plan to completely retire the A-10 project will be faster than the original schedule. Previously, the timetable showed that the A-10 would retire all the "Pigs" by the end of this decade. Currently, some lawmakers still oppose the retirement of these symbols of American air supremacy because the U.S. Air Force "has not found a replacement for these planes".

However, the proposed retirement list does not include the Block 20 batch of F-22A "Raptor" stealth fighters. In recent years, the Air Force has tried to retire about 32 of them due to concerns about their combat capability. However, Congress has repeatedly blocked these proposals.

Aside from retiring aircraft, the U.S. military is also increasing some procurement projects, with the E-7 "Wedgetail" early warning aircraft project being the most controversial recently.

At a press conference on June 26, an Air Force official said that the cost of one E-7 early warning aircraft had increased from $588 million to $724 million, and the increase in cost helped speed up the cancellation of the plane's plan. The official said the Air Force was concerned whether it could survive in a competitive environment.

In contrast, the Pentagon is looking for solutions to replace early warning aircraft with space-based radar and is purchasing more Northrop's E-2D early warning aircraft. This will be a major shift for the Air Force, which has been retiring aging E-3 Sentinel airborne warning and control (AWACS) aircraft and has long considered the E-7 as the best successor.

The budget will also require $1.03 billion for the procurement of Northrop's B-21 "Raider" bomber, and $4.2 billion for the LGM-35A "Sentinel" intercontinental ballistic missile, which will replace the aging Minuteman III. Northrop is also building the first "Sentinel" missile.

The procurement funds for the B-21 bomber will increase from $1.9 billion in 2025 to $2.6 billion in 2026, plus an additional $2.1 billion in settlement expenses. If all the expenses are approved by Congress, the procurement budget for the B-21 will more than double the original amount.

The budget requires $3.1 billion to continue procuring 24 F-15EX aircraft. At the same time, the procurement of F-35A will be cut nearly in half, from 44 in 2025 to 24 next year. The U.S. military plans to significantly reduce the number of F-35 Joint Strike Fighters purchased by the Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps in 2026 to 47.

This means that the U.S. Air Force will receive 45 new fighter jets in 2026, below the annual benchmark of 72 fighter jets needed to modernize the fleet as stated by the Air Force.

The U.S. Air Force's budget also includes $807 million for the Unmanned Combat Aircraft (CCA) program. The development budget for the F-47 fighter, also known as the Next Generation Air Dominance, will increase from $2.4 billion in 2025 to nearly $2.6 billion in 2026. If the Trump-backed "Big and Beautiful Act" is passed, an additional $900 million in budget will be added, bringing Boeing's F-47 budget to nearly $3.5 billion.

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Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7522020045564707363/

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