[calex59]

This guy obviously doesn't know that air power is the key to winning any fight. Without it, you can have as many "squads" of marines or army that you want and you will not win. Germany found that out in WWII and it has been demonstrated over and over again since then. The only think wrong with our armed forces is that fact Clinton and other Dem presidents have weakened them to the point of absurdity. Clinton almost destroyed our B-52 capability. Air power is where it's at.

[Redleg Duke]

Are you aware that the total weight of aircraft and aircrew shot down over Europe during WWII exceeded the total weight of bombs they dropped on targets in Europe?

An interesting little factoid from my research paper from US Air Force Air War College.

[section9]

Airpower is decisive, but it cannot take and hold ground. Period.

The PAVN survived the Linebacker campaigns to conquer South Vietnam. Had the U.S. Army rolled north to engage the PAVN, it would have been a different story.

Be Seeing You,

Chris

[Enchante]

Exactly. I don't think it should be viewed as a zero-sum game between advanced aircraft and ships vs. infantry squads. Yes, budgeting can require hard choices, but in this case the real problem is that our Army and Marine forces have been cut too much and we need more defense budget, period, to support them. We need more ground troops, better equiped, but that need not come at the expense of Air Force and Naval forces that are essential to dominating the battle space. If we had not had such utter domination in both Gulf Wars our losses among Army and Marines could have been much higher.

[PzLdr]

In Desert Storm, after all the bombing, strafing, etc., etc.,it took the Army and the Marines to go in and take Kuwait; and to destroy the Republican Guard [which was within reach of Allied air power throughout the campaign]. The Iraqis didn't book until the ground forces went in.

In the 'shock and awe' phase of Operation Iraqi Freedom, what exactly did air do, except make for some nice TV shots?

Is air power an important component? You betcha. Is it the key? Only in the Donald's dreams. The Luftwaffe had absolute air superiority over the Soviet Union in 1941. Didn't win. Same for us over Japan. They didn't throw in the towel 'til the mushrooms sprouted.Ground power wins wars. Can you win a campaign without air superiority? Check Rommel's 1942 campaign [and he failed in '41 with air superiority]. Can you win a war without air power? Yep. Check Viet Nam.

[thinking]

Yes, as long as there is fuel for the engines.....

[curiosity]

This guy obviously doesn't know that air power is the key to winning any fight...Air power is where it's at.

Yeah, right. Air power is proving to be really helpful in putting down the Iraqi insurgency /sarcasm.

Did you even read the article? Obviously, air superioirty is essential, but ground forces are also essential. Air power can't take and hold ground. The author's point is that we've invested too little in the latter, and THAT'S why we've had so much trouble in Iraq, and that's why we have few good options with Iran. There's no way you can disarm Iran with air power alone.

[lepton]

Air power is where it's at.

Combined Arms is where it's at...and has been since Gustavus Adolphus. Air power is simply the most strained participant, and the most mobile. It is unusual for air power to fall after ground power, but at the beginning of WWII it did happen that way in Poland.