Flying Standby on Air America

The Air Force will always have more important things to do than airlift Army light tanks. So don't build those Future Burned-Out Hulks.

Wasting Army appropriations on a niche airmobile (or, God help us, air droppable) capability that will hardly ever be relevant is a mistake that will get soldiers killed and threaten the ability to achieve the mission.

I've mentioned this before, but let me return to this neat innovation that for the Army is a problem: 

The U.S. Air Force conducted a test of its Rapid Dragon palletized munition system concept Nov. 3, which could one day pave the way to launching a barrage of cruise missiles out of the back of mobility aircraft.

Note to Army:

Let's see a show of Army hands for those who believe the Air Force will free up the cargo planes and fighter escorts and all the other supporting assets needed to move the light armor in numbers that could make a difference?

And now the Air Force has new missions for its transport planes.

I'm not saying that isn't an important mission. But it isn't an Army mission.

So stop the Army madness:

Light tanks are stupid. New light tanks are a waste of money. Just call them FBOHs (which I suggest be pronounced "Fu-bohs" to be similar to FUBAR).

Lord, people, has nobody noticed we have a lot of surplus heavily armed, well protected, tracked Abrams tanks not in the force structure that could be given to infantry brigades?*

The Army can call light tanks Mobile Protected Firepower to disguise but not change the reality that they have substandard firepower, aren't protected against anything but the smallest weapon, and aren't mobile strategically in the real world and tactically won't move one bit after blowing up. Really, the MPF is the Holy Roman Empire of armored fighting vehicles.

For the Air Force, there are always more important things than granting Army wishes. Building the Future Burned-Out Hulk won't--and shouldn't--pique the Air Force's interest in moving the vehicle in significant numbers.

Still, I count the MPF as progress from the Future Combat Systems (FCS) days when the Army thought that if it plowed enough money into a project it could get a well-protected and highly lethal armored vehicle weighing no more than 19 tons so it could be airlifted anywhere. The wonder tank, I said in Military Review, could not be built.

*That link goes to my Army magazine article on the topic.