JUNE 27, 2025 – During a hearing in Washington, Air Force senior leaders told a Senate defense subcommittee that the department’s fiscal year 2026 budget request prioritizes defending the homeland and bolstering defenses in the Indo-Pacific region, where China is the pacing threat.
Air Force Secretary Troy E. Meink said that to defend the homeland, the department is modernizing its nuclear forces and nuclear command, control and communications.
Nuclear forces are being upgraded with the development of the LG-35A Sentinel, an intercontinental ballistic missile system, which will replace the LGM-30G Minuteman III ICBMs. The other leg of the triad being developed is the B-21 Raider stealth bomber, which is capable of delivering conventional and nuclear munitions.
Regarding the pacing threat, Meink said, “We will deter China through investments in our people, our readiness and our posture within the Indo-Pacific region.”
He noted that readiness in the region includes conducting high-level exercises that will test the department’s ability to deploy and operate in harsh environments.
Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David W. Allvin said that in addition to the importance of the nuclear triad modernization, other efforts include the development of the F-47 Next Generation Air Dominance fighter jet — designed to replace the F-22 Raptor — revitalizing the B-52 Stratofortress bomber fleet and upgrading the F-35 Lightning II and F-15 Eagle fighter aircraft.
“These systems will anchor our strategic deterrent for decades,” he said.
Equally important to the department is the investment in service members, Allvin said, noting that the ongoing continuing resolution has negatively impacted personnel funding and recruiting.
The general said a more lethal Air Force means prioritizing the right capabilities and projects while divesting aging systems and unused infrastructure.
The space domain is critical to U.S. economic prosperity and national security, said Chief of Space Operations Gen. B. Chance Saltzman, noting that space assets include GPS and satellites, which facilitate communications, as well as battlefield awareness and targeting.
“In the past three years, the Space Force has been asked to take on critical new missions like ground and air moving target indications, adding new space control capabilities, advanced training requirements and a threefold increase in launch tempo at our national spaceports,” Saltzman said.
The newest mission set is the space-based technology development associated with the “Golden Dome” program.
“These are not modernization efforts or shifts from legacy missions. They represent new requirements for missions that have never been accomplished by military space organizations,” Saltzman said, adding that acquisition professionals understand the needs of the warfighter and have driven efficiencies across all mission areas, saving hundreds of millions of dollars on launch services and shaving months off contracting timelines.
By David Vergun, DOD News