Ensuring peace through strength is the best way to maintain our nation’s freedom and counter our totalitarian adversaries. Countries like Russia, China, and Iran do not adhere to international norms, nor are they moved by justice, fairness, or the idea that humans have certain inalienable rights. Rather, deterrence – convincing our adversaries that initiating conflict with us would be too costly – is our only option to counter them.
These adversaries, however, are constantly working to surpass us. To maintain deterrence and keep our nation and our people safe from the world’s totalitarian regimes, we need to maintain the world’s leading national security apparatus and assure our adversaries that if they seek a conflict with us, it will not end well for them.
In the ever-evolving landscape of global security, one truth remains constant: air dominance is paramount. The best way for us to show our strength and assert our global military might is by developing a next-generation fighter jet – a supremely important military asset which enables us to gain air dominance, strike targets around the world, and counter air defenses. We need to always stay a step ahead of our adversaries, which is why the Air Force’s Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) fighter is so crucial.
Some say that we don’t need an NGAD fighter, arguing that our current fleet or development programs such as Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) can fill our future needs. However, development of our newest and most advanced fighter jet, the F-35, began in the 1990s. We cannot meet the challenges of the 21st century with a 20th century airplane. And CCA, while a valuable partner to a fighter jet, cannot make up the difference between a 5th generation and 6th generation fighter. Our enemies certainly agree, as they work around the clock to create more lethal and effective weapons systems and aircraft to defeat ours. China's aggressive pursuit of military modernization, from stealth technology to long-range missiles and electronic warfare capabilities poses a direct threat to our traditional air superiority.
It is especially concerning that General David Allvin, the Chief of Staff of the Air Force, will not commit to the future of NGAD especially after ten years of development and billions of dollars. Our nation’s military leaders should know better than anyone that we have no time to waste in continually upgrading our fighter jet arsenal. Given the challenges of aircraft production, including securing critical supplies and ramping up capacity, we cannot afford delays.
Others may argue that NGAD will be too costly. I would counter, however, that we can always afford to protect our nation from our greatest threats. While it is true that the government must control and trim its spending, it cannot endanger our national security to do so. NGAD is an investment not only in American air dominance, but in Chinese deterrence. And it is truly an investment in America’s security and continued freedom and safety.
We can develop the NGAD fighter to be not only highly capable thanks to the latest and most cutting-edge technology — including greater range, survivability, and payload with the newest and most robust weapons systems — but also easily upgradable from the start. With improved upgradability, future updates to keep the jet on the cutting edge of technology will be cheaper, quicker, and easier to implement. These advancements will make the costs of upgrading the platform more affordable over the longer term. We should learn from Lockheed Martin’s difficult F-35 upgrade experience (which will take over ten years and cost $20 billion) how valuable an enhanced update system is.
As we see threats around the globe continue to grow, we should remember that if our technology starts to look weak and out of date, we are losing deterrence and inviting attacks from adversaries. We need to add to today’s capable systems to ensure we have a diversified and modern fighter jet fleet. If we invest now and strengthen our arsenal, perhaps we can stave off future wars. We can learn from the wisdom of George Washington who said, “To be prepared for war is one of the most effective means of preserving peace.”
We cannot afford to further delay or postpone the development of the NGAD fighter. It is well past time to push forward. The world is watching. And our adversaries are cheering for delays in developing and producing the NGAD fighter. Let’s not give those who mean us harm reason to cheer!
Saulius "Saul" Anuzis is the president of the 60 Plus Association and a Republican Party politician from the U.S. State of Michigan. He was chairman of the Michigan Republican Party from 2005–2009 and was also a candidate for national chairman of the Republican National Committee in 2009 and 2011.