Better: make the Air Force junior to the Army and Navy. Have the Theater Commander have the job of doing the service evaluations of the Air Force generals assigned to his area of operations, and he will do it according to how well they support the people on the ground.
The purpose of the Air Force is to support the ground forces.
The purpose of fighters is to clear the airspace so that CAS can operate.
The purpose of fighters is to clear the airspace so that CAS can operate.
***And to achieve air superiority over enemy territory, allowing bombers unfettered interdiction access. I have heard several times an unverified rumor that the F117 flew 2% of the missions in Gulf War I but hit 45% of the targets.