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NGAD represents conscionable 1 constituent of a broader effort to support gait pinch adversaries specified arsenic Russia and China.
In caller months, I person penned articles for The National Interest describing a rather bleak outlook for nan U.S. Air Force’s prospective Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) sixth-generation combatant pitchy programme (the would-be successor to nan fifth-generation F-22 Raptor); among nan main reasons for nan bleak outlook is nan program’s prohibitive cost, nearly triple that of nan F-35 Lightning II (which, like the F-22, is a Lockheed Martin product). In addition, nan existent main of unit of nan Air Force (CSAF), Gen. David Allvin, has been deemphasizing NGAD and instead shifting that emphasis towards a “notional Light Fighter concept.”
However, for illustration nan saying goes, “There’s a caller sheriff successful town,” and that saying applies not only to nan caller leadership in nan White House but besides to nan United States Senate, acknowledgment to nan recently elected GOP mostly successful nan latter. Accordingly, nan new Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) chairman, Sen. Roger Wicker (R-MI).
The NGAD’s Basics
The latest comes to america from a January 27, 2025, article in Breaking Defense by Valeria Insinna titled “EXCLUSIVE: New SASC chair sets show connected $200B defense boost, awesome acquisition betterment push.” One of nan snippets therein that caught my oculus was this:
“It could besides thief money continued improvement of nan Air Force’s Next Generation Air Dominance fighter, which faces an uncertain early owed to fund constraints arsenic nan work balances different costly modernization projects specified arsenic nan Sentinel intercontinental ballistic rocket strategy and nan B-21 Raider bomber. As Breaking Defense first reported, nan work recently concluded a study that validated nan request for a parented sixth-gen fighter, but has near nan incoming Trump management to make nan last determination connected whether to proceed aliases cancel nan programme … In 2024, ‘we agreed reluctantly to do a spot of a region to fto nan experts return different look astatine whether NGAD should beryllium manned. And nan reply came backmost aft nan predetermination pinch nan vengeance, perfectly yes,’ Wicker said.”
Digging Deeper: Sen. Wicker Mini-Bio
Wicker’s charismatic curriculum vitae page notes that he “served connected progressive work successful nan U.S. Air Force and past joined nan Air Force Reserve. He retired from nan Reserve successful 2004 pinch nan rank of lieutenant colonel [pay people O-5].” More specifically, he served successful nan U.S. Air Force’s Judge Advocate General (JAG) Corps.
Wicker has been a U.S. legislator since 2007, consequent to spending six position successful nan U.S. House of Representatives, representing Mississippi’s 1st Congressional District. Prior to being elevated to his existent chairmanship arsenic a windfall from nan November 2024 elections, he had been nan ranking personnel successful nan 118th Congress. Back successful 2017, he authored nan “Securing nan Homeland by Increasing our Power connected nan Seas (SHIPS) Implementation Act,” which made it charismatic U.S. argumentation to execute nan U.S. Navy’s request for a 355-ship fleet; this measure was signed into law by President Donald Trump (the Trump 45 administration, that is, not Trump 47) arsenic portion of the FY2018 National Defense Authorization Act.
The Way Forward?
When viewed successful a broader context, NGAD represents conscionable 1 constituent of a broader effort wrong nan Air Force successful peculiar and the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) as a full to upgrade technological capabilities and support gait pinch adversaries specified arsenic Russia and China; different caller illustration is nan USAF’s upgrades to nan B61 atomic gravity bomb arsenal.
An further motion of dream for nan NGAD’s caller lease connected life comes courtesy of my TNI workfellow Peter Suciu, who notes successful a January 30, 2025 article titled “Maybe nan NGAD Program Isn’t Dead Yet” that nan DoD raised nan ceiling costs for nan engines, frankincense signaling a willingness to fork complete nan bigger bucks that wasn’t evident successful nan connection that nan CSAF related past year.
About nan Author: Christian D. Orr
Christian D. Orr was antecedently a Senior Defense Editor for National Security Journal (NSJ) and 19FortyFive. He is simply a erstwhile Air Force Security Forces officer, Federal rule enforcement officer, and backstage subject contractor (with assignments worked successful Iraq, nan United Arab Emirates, Kosovo, Japan, Germany, and nan Pentagon). Chris holds a B.A. successful International Relations from nan University of Southern California (USC) and an M.A. successful Intelligence Studies (concentration successful Terrorism Studies) from American Military University (AMU). He has besides been published in The Daily Torch, The Journal of Intelligence and Cyber Security, and Simple Flying. Last but not least, he is simply a Companion of nan Order of the Naval Order of nan United States (NOUS). If you’d for illustration to prime his encephalon further, you tin ofttimes find him astatine the Old Virginia Tobacco Company (OVTC) lounge successful Manassas, Virginia, partaking of good stogies and bully value quality camaraderie.
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