THE AIR FORCE ASSOCIATION THE FORCE BEHIND THE FORCE

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THE AIR FORCE ASSOCIATIONTHE FORCE BEHIND THE
FORCE
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AFA Mission

• The Air Force Association
• Advocates aerospace power and a strong national
  defense
• Supports the United States Air Force and the Air
  Force family
• Promotes aerospace excellence through public
  awareness programs

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Sources of Policy Input

• AFA Councils
• Force Capability Committee
• Members
• AFA Staff
• Air Force Issue Briefs/Program Analysis
• National Symposia Presentations
• Congressional Testimony

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Policy Review Process

• AFA Resolutions Committee
• AFA Executive Committee (prior to and during
  Convention)
• AFA Board of Directors
• AFA Delegates to the National Convention

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Post-Convention Dissemination

• US Senate and House of Representatives
• Air Force and DoD Leaders
• Service War Colleges
• Think Tanks
• Affinity Organizations
• Print and Electronic News Media
• Online at www.AFA.org
• AFA volunteers in State/Chapter organizations

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And now to the Top Issues
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• The Top Issues of the Air Force Association are
  incorporated in the Statement of Policy. Each
  issue is significant and their order does not
  reflect priority.

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Resources for Defense 
TOP ISSUE

• The proposed Fiscal 2004 defense budget of
  379.9 billion represents a real increase over
  the Fiscal 2003 plan, but it does not include
  money for new tankers, an expansion of Air Force
  end strength, or other pressing needs The
  United States can afford to spend more on
  national defense AFA believes that adequately
  supporting national security requires the US to
  commit a minimum of four percent of GDP to
  defense. Congress and DOD must work together to
  raise readiness, improve quality of life
  programs, recapitalize and modernize equipment,
  and foster transformation of the armed forces.

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Terrorism and Homeland Defense
TOP ISSUE

• AFA believes Congress and the Administration
  should work together to adequately fund the
  Department of Homeland Security so that it has
  the resources to effectively secure our
  homeland.

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Concern for People
TOP ISSUE

• Recruiting and Retention
• AFA believes the importance of recruiting and
  retaining quality people in sufficient numbers
  cannot be overstated It is time to increase Air
  Force end-strength to meet actual requirements
  DOD should increase funding for quality of life
  programsand provide an open season for
  enrollment in the Montgomery G.I. Bill program
  for all airmento attract and retain adequate
  numbers of high-quality volunteers.

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• The Challenge
• Current commitments, especially those growing
  out of the global war on terrorism, have
  substantially increased operations and personnel
  tempo across the Air Force. AFA believes force
  structure should be sized to match the
  requirements of our national security strategy.
  Although funding for Air Force personnelis up,
  more resources are needed.
• --AFA 2004 Statement of
  Policy

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Concern for People
TOP ISSUE

• Civilian Workforce Shaping
• More than 40 percent of Air Force civilians
  will be eligible to retire within the next five
  years The impending wave of civilian
  retirements affords the Air Force the opportunity
  to shape and recruit the workforce of the future
  The Air Force must have the tools to correct
  skill imbalances and stay competitive in the
  labor market.

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• Retirement Bow Wave
• More than 40 percent of Air Force civilian
  employees will be eligible for retirement in the
  next five years. Less than 10 percent of Air
  Force civilians are in their first five years of
  employment.
• USAF is about to lose huge numbers of
  civilian workers, with too few replacements
  in sight.
• -- AIR FORCE Magazine

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Force Modernization
TOP ISSUE

• AFAs position is that new air dominance
  platforms are urgently needed. The F/A-22 and
  F-35 fighters, which represent vital and
  complementary capabilities, must be fully funded.
  The development of a new long-range strike
  platform must also be accelerated. The Air Force
  would like to retire by the end of this decade as
  many as 131 KC-135E tankers, and DOD and Congress
  must work together to support the Air Force plan
  to expedite the replacement of these aircraft.
• A US military that is becoming more and more
  expeditionary will need more airlift. DOD should
  procure more than the currently planned 180
  C-17s, continue with multi-year procurement of
  C-130Js, and press ahead with modernization of
  C-5s and C-130s.

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• Congressional Testimony
• The aging aircraft fleet is one of the biggest
  challenges the Air Force faces today. Buying F-22
  Raptors, C-17 Globemaster IIIs and Joint Strike
  Fighters -- the only platform planned to replace
  the F-16 -- is how the Air Force plans to
  modernize the fleet. However, the replacement
  rate is such that most aircraft platforms
  average age will not decrease for several years.
• --General Les Lyles
• Former AFMC Commander

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Space Leadership
TOP ISSUE

• DOD in 2001 designated the Air Force as its
  executive agent for space. Congress should take
  the next step and grant to the Air Force Title 10
  authority and responsibility for all military
  space activities. Codifying space leadership is
  absolutely essential to the success of future
  operations.
• AFA applauds Air Force efforts in providing
  space stewardship for DOD and supports continued
  emphasis on the development of the right people,
  programs, systems, and forces to secure the
  nation's preeminence in space.

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• Space Commissions Unanimous Recommendation
• Amend Title 10 U.S.C. to assign the Air Force
  responsibility to organize, train and equip for
  prompt and sustained offensive and defensive air
  and space operations
• In addition, the Secretary of Defense
  should designate the Air Force as Executive Agent
  for Space within the Department of Defense.
• 
  --2001 Space Commission Report

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Total Force Concerns
TOP ISSUE

• The challenges facing the Guard and Reserve
  have never been greater. Measures must be taken
  now to prevent further harm to these critical
  resources. AFA believes the Guard and Reserve
  should be manned, equipped, modernized, and
  compensated commensurate with their increased
  contribution to the Total Force. Because the
  Guard and Reserve have to maintain the same
  readiness standards as active duty members, they
  should also receive increased access to TRICARE.
  Also, we need a special review to lay out a
  roadmap for future Guard and Reserve
  utilization?giving clear guidance to these vital
  Air Force members.

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Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve
Presence In April 2003, more than 36,000
Guardsmen and Reservists were on active duty in
support of Operations Iraqi Freedom, Enduring
Freedom, Noble Eagle, and other deployments.
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Real Time C4ISR
TOP ISSUE

• AFAs position is that Congress must fully fund
  C4ISR systems and capability upgrades.
  Specifically, a robust technology development
  effort for the Space Based Radar must be funded,
  along with research and development of other
  space-based, manned and unmanned C4ISR systems.

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• C4ISR
• Command, control, communications,
  computers, intelligence, surveillance and
  reconnaissance are becoming more important in the
  future. UAV systems, such as Global Hawk and
  Predator, promise to expand our ISR collection
  capability.
• --Dr James G. Roche
• Secretary of the Air Force

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Cyber Defense and Attack
TOP ISSUE

• AFA believes it is crucial for the US to
  defend itself against cyber attack. The response
  to an attack on our national information
  infrastructure must be swift and sure, just as it
  would be if we were subjected to a traditional
  physical attack. Protecting military, government,
  and commercial networks will require increased
  cooperation between the private sector, DOD, and
  other government agencies.

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Industrial Base Support
TOP ISSUE

• A strong US defense industrial base is
  essential to sustaining, modernizing, and
  transforming our armed forces in the future. As
  it looks to reconstitute and reshape the force,
  DOD must pursue sensible acquisition policies and
  business practices and support the research and
  development of technology that is critical to
  maintaining a world-class industrial base.
• Moreover, the Air Force and DOD must strike the
  right balance in the partnership of the private
  sector, logistics centers, research labs, and
  academia.

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Science and Technology Concerns
TOP ISSUE

• AFA believes that DOD should live up to its
  goal of increasing ST investment to three
  percent of the overall defense budget. Adequate
  resources are also needed to invigorate and
  strengthen the public/private partnership of Air
  Force, industry, and academia in science and
  technology.

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• RD, ST and the Future
• Air Force research and development is
  synonymous with the future of the Air ForceThe
  Air Force must have the flexibility to adjust its
  resources to provide and sustain a robust ST
  program.
• -- Shortchanging the Future,
• an AFA Special Report

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Commitment to Veterans
TOP ISSUE

• AFA urges Congress to make mandatory the
  funding of the VA health care system and increase
  that funding to correct current inadequacies.
  Congress should also take the steps necessary to
  authorize and fund full concurrent receipt of
  retired and disability pay and eliminate outdated
  regulations that limit and offset survivor
  benefits.

The willingness of future generations to
serve in our military will be directly dependent
upon how we have treated those who have served in
the past.
--George Washington
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TOP ISSUES OF THE AIR FORCE ASSOCIATIONVi
sit us online at http//www.afa.org