Aerospace Power: An Imperative for National Security
An Imperative
for the Nation
The Mitchell Institute is the only aerospace power-focused think tank in the nation’s capital. The Institute informs the national security debate, educates about the essential role of aerospace power, and cultivates aerospace-minded talent.
Content
In the News & Commentary
The Mitchell Institute’s editorials, media articles featuring Mitchell expertise, and other content.
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Aerospace Nation Interview Series
The Mitchell Institute’s Aerospace Nation Interview Series.
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Publications
Read Mitchell Institute Research Studies, Policy Papers, and the latest entries in the Mitchell Forum Paper series.
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Upcoming Events
Upcoming events feature thoughtful commentary from decisionmakers, thought leaders, and other authoritative voices from the aerospace power community.
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Featured
Space
Episode 60 – Gaining the Edge in Space Maneuver Warfare
Episode Summary: In episode 60 if the Aerospace Advantage Podcast, Gaining the Edge in Space Maneuver Warfare, host John “Slick” Baum is joined by Mitchell Institute Senior Fellow Chris Stone, Dr. Ron Faibish of General Atomics EMS, Maj Nathan Greiner of DARPA, and Space Force Weapons Officer Lt Col Brandon Davenport to discuss what it will mean to successfully engage in space given current and future threats. A key technology required to facilitate this future
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Space
Schriever Spacepower Forum: Gen John Raymond
The Mitchell Institute’s Spacepower Advantage Center of Excellence (MI-SPACE) invites you to watch our virtual Schriever Spacepower Forum event with General John W. Raymond. Gen Raymond joins us to discuss what’s ahead for the service in 2022 and beyond. General (Ret.) Kevin P. Chilton, Explorer Chair for Space Warfighting Studies at MI-SPACE moderates the discussion and facilitates audience Q&A.
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Airpower
Episode 59 – China in 2022: Top 5 Security Factors
Episode Summary: In episode 59 of the Aerospace Advantage, China in 2022: Top 5 Security Factors, host John “Slick” Baum speaks with Mitchell Institute Research Analyst and China expert Daniel Rice to better understand how important trends, key events, and leadership decisions will impact the way in which the Asian superpower approaches regional diplomacy and hard power. Learn more about why things like the 20th Party Congress, the RCEP, Chinese activities in Afghanistan, and international perceptions
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Space
Maneuver Warfare in Space: The Strategic Mandate for Nuclear Thermal Propulsion
The Mitchell Institute invites you to watch our rollout for our newest policy paper: Maneuver Warfare in Space: The Strategic Mandate for Nuclear Thermal Propulsion by Christopher Stone, Senior Fellow for Space Studies for the Mitchell Institute’s Spacepower Advantage Center of Excellence (MI-SPACE). In an era where space is an increasingly contested domain, it is crucial to ensure satellites can maneuver to avoid threats and position themselves to best net mission effects. This demands new
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Issues
Airpower
No matter the mission, from air superiority and long range strike to air mobility and command and control, a broad range of missions executed in the air provide vital options at the strategic, operational, and tactical realms.
Space
National security space activities are essential facets of any military operation, while also creating conditions essential for the civilian economy.
Acquisition
Empowering actors at all levels with a smart set of options at the right time and place demands procuring the most effective, efficient, and resilient set of tools.
Strategy
Meeting nationals security requirements today and tomorrow requires insightful, creative approaches that prioritize America’s strengths, while not projecting undue vulnerability.
Budgeting
Resource investment must prioritize investments that will yield best value for the Air Force, Space Force, and national security establishment as a whole.
Nuclear
Strategic deterrence is the bedrock of the national security enterprise thanks to the virtues and value of the triad.
In the News and Commentary
All News
“I would disagree with the commander”: Mitchell Institute dean says small drones not a major threat
Government Matters | January 12, 2021 | Lt Gen Dave Deptula, USAF (Ret.)|
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United States must make satellite constellations more defensible, says former Strategic Command leader
Government Matters | December 22, 2021 | Gen Kevin Chilton, USAF (Ret.) |
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Pentagon should focus on action to deter anti-satellite capabilities, says spacepower strategy expert
Government Matters | December 9, 2021 | Christopher Stone |
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Modernizing Satellite Communication
Air Force Magazine | December 3, 2021 | Maj Gen Lawrence Stutzriem, USAF (Ret.) |
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Responses to Russian anti-satellite tests should be more about capability than condemnation
Defense News | December 1, 2021 | Christopher Stone | It is time for the United States to move beyond the strategic restraint posture coupled with the international shaming response to such ASAT testing events. The fact is, China and Russia are intent on creating a new norm where ASAT kinetic weapons testing is a key component of their deterrence and warfighting strategies. The U.S. must leverage its military institutions, like U.S. Space Command, to
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Reviving A “Weak” Department Of The Air Force
Forbes | October 25, 2021 | Lt Gen (Ret.) Dave Deptula | The Air Force has repeatedly tried to get Congress to allow it to retire its old aircraft and reduce its excess infrastructure to free up funds inside its own budget allocation to invest in modern capabilities, all to no avail. Now it is time for plan B. Without Congressional approval to retire its old aircraft, or to close excess infrastructure, and without any
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America’s Drone Programs Matter Today More Than Ever
The Hill | October 11, 2021 | Lt Gen (Ret.) Dave Deptula | Simply put, airborne ISR conducted by UAVs over Afghanistan is a national imperative. With the completion of the withdrawal, we are left all but blind without an aerial capability that can monitor and, if necessary, rapidly strike in this under-governed, terrorist haven. More than ever, it is critical that Congress and the Department of Defense recognize this imperative and resource operational UAV
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Survey Finds Nuclear Triad Modernization Has Bipartisan Support, Former Defense Official Reports
Government Matters | October 10, 2021 | Col (Ret.) Mark Gunzinger | Col (Ret.) Mark Gunzinger, director of Future Concepts and Capability Assessments at The Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies and former deputy assistant secretary of defense, shared the results of a survey on voters sampled to mimic the 2020 election. The survey found 91 percent of respondents thought modernizing the United States’ nuclear deterrent system should be a priority for the Defense Department. The
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Publications
All Publications
Maneuver Warfare in Space: The Strategic Mandate for Nuclear Propulsion
Arlington, VA | January 13, 2022 — The Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies is pleased to announce a new entry in its Policy Paper series, Maneuver Warfare in Space: The Strategic Mandate for Nuclear Propulsion by Christopher Stone, Senior Fellow for Space Studies at the Mitchell Institute Spacepower Advantage Center of Excellence. America’s national security space enterprise is at an inflection point. Current U.S. Space Force (USSF) designs are based on constellation architectures with limited
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The Backbone of JADC2: Satellite Communications for Information Age Warfare
Arlington, VA | December 15, 2021 — The Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies is pleased to announce a new entry in its Policy Paper series, The Backbone of JADC2: Satellite Communications for Information Age Warfare by Gen Kevin Chilton, USAF (Ret.) Explorer Chair for Space Warfighting Studies, and Lukas Autenried, Senior Analyst, at the Mitchell Institute Spacepower Advantage Center of Excellence. Today, DOD’s SATCOM enterprise is at a crossroads. Current systems and architectures are simply
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Affordable Mass: The Need for a Cost-Effective PGM Mix for Great Power Conflict
Arlington, VA | November 29, 2021 — The Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies is pleased to announce a new entry in its Policy Paper series, Affordable Mass: The Need for a Cost-Effective PGM Mix for Great Power Conflict by Col Mark A. Gunzinger, USAF (Ret.), Director of Future Concepts and Capability Assessments at the Mitchell Institute. A corollary to the maxim that “you go to war with the forces you have” is that you also
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Reimagining the MQ-9 Reaper
Arlington, VA | November 18, 2021 — The Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies is pleased to announce a new entry in its Policy Paper series, Reimagining the MQ-9 Reaper by Maj Gen Lawrence A. Stutzriem, USAF (Ret.), Director of Research at the Mitchell Institute. The United States now faces an extremely broad set of threats, including peer competitors like China and Russia, nuclear ambitious adversaries North Korea and Iran, and non-state actors like ISIS and
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The Future Fighter Force Our Nation Requires: Building a Bridge
ARLINGTON, VA | October 26, 2021 — The Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies is pleased to announce a new Research Study, The Future Fighter Force Our Nation Requires: Building a Bridge, by Heather Penney, Senior Resident Fellow at the Mitchell Institute. The U.S. Air Force’s fighter force is in crisis. After three decades of canceled, curtailed, and delayed investment in fighter aircraft modernization, the nation now finds itself in major need of these capabilities with far
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The Eagle and the Dragon: An Opening Salvo in the Ideological Clash of the Ages
Arlington, VA | September 28, 2021 — The Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies announces a new entry in its Forum Paper series, The Eagle and the Dragon: An Opening Salvo in the Ideological Clash of the Ages by Dr. David Stuckenberg. During the Alaska Summit in March 2021, the United States and China attempted to engage in formal dialog in an effort to ease rising temperatures between the powers. Instead, they spiked to historic highs.
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From EMD to Milestone C and Beyond: Common Issues that Affect Developmental Programs Transitioning into Production
Arlington, VA | September 15, 2021 — The Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies is pleased to announce a new entry in its Forum Paper series, From EMD to Milestone C and Beyond: Common Issues that Affect Developmental Programs Transitioning into Production by Lt Gen Mark D. Shackelford, USAF (Ret.). DOD and Air Force leaders are unanimous that the United States must be able to deliver critical capabilities rapidly and at affordable costs to maintain deterrence
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Understanding American Voters’ Sentiment on Strategic Nuclear Deterrence
Arlington, VA | September 15, 2021 — The Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies is pleased to announce a new entry in its Policy Paper series, Understanding American Voters’ Sentiment on National Security & Maintaining a Modern Strategic Nuclear Deterrence Posture. Since the late Cold War-era, the debate surrounding strategic nuclear deterrence has been incredibly predictable. The arms control community, on the one hand, and advocates for the nuclear triad, on the other, continue to wield
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1,763
Air Force F-35 Procurement Requirement to Outpace Advancing Threats
Flying & Fighting
in the Modern Age
Employing successful modern combat aerospace power today and in the future demands questioning long-standing assumptions and seeking smarter ways of achieving desired mission goals.
270
The Number of Bombers Required to Meet Real-World Demand
Future Trends
Individuals engaging in tomorrow’s aerospace domain, whether at the tactical, operational, or strategic levels, will face a future far different than what they experienced in the past. The last century saw aerospace power ascend in the industrial age, when the state of the art was governed by mechanical prowess.
29.2
Average Age of an Aircraft in the Air Force Inventory
Dollars & Sense
The US Air Force is embarking upon a crucial modernization cycle. Presently, airmen are flying combat missions in aircraft that average over a quarter of a century in age. Said another way, many pilots are younger than the aircraft in which they are taking into the sky.
386
The Number of Operational Squadrons Required by the US Air Force
Analysis
Learn more from our additional resources of studies, policy papers, forums, and other featured news articles.