Air Mobility Challenges in Kabul: The Imperative for the U.S. Military to Find Aviation Solution
The Department of Defence (DoD) is urged to incorporate mobility planning more deliberately into its contingency planning and execution to prevent a potential catastrophe, as highlighted by recent events.
In gray zone competition, adversaries may seek to target America's air mobility capabilities. This vulnerability was evident during the Dunkirk-like evacuation of Kabul, where the cargo aircraft at the international airport jettisoned flares as a countermeasure against missile attacks.
The military's herculean effort to evacuate from Kabul has incurred physical and mental costs that will not go away. To address this, the United States needs to develop an expeditionary Civil Reserve Air Fleet (CRAF) to rapidly surge support into uncertain environments.
Phillip Surrey, with nineteen years' experience in air mobility, suggests these improvements to the DoD's air mobility capabilities. He emphasises the need for multiple airfield options based on capacity, legal, political, and societal considerations.
The Kabul airlift underscores the importance of such a strategy. In a contested environment, the DoD needs an air mobility enterprise to execute Agile Combat Employment as envisioned in a potential China scenario.
Moreover, gray zone competition may require airpower to get to the fight or extricate from it. To ensure success, a robust air mobility enterprise is essential. Airports are the jugular vein to almost every operation for the United States military.
Combat-focused planners often assume away mobility risk, which can fail to ensure that air mobility can operate at the volume and tempo needed in the contested environment. To overcome this, the DoD can optimise its vital air mobility lifeline by increasing basing infrastructure, improving commercial augmentation, and incorporating mobility planning.
The United States must also strengthen its air mobility capabilities in countries around the Indo-Pacific region, Eastern Europe, and the Arctic during gray-zone competition. This includes establishing a redundant, adaptable system of airfields it can operate to at a moment's notice with host-nation permission.
Lastly, mobility experts and liaison officers should be assigned into every exercise, operational plan, and contingency that involves transportation. Gray zone competition requires 'fight tonight' forces to mobilise with little to no warning, making the presence of these experts crucial.
As America transitions from nation-building in Afghanistan to strategic competition with China and others, it is essential to strengthen its air mobility capabilities to ensure success in the gray zone.
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