Still applies today, that’s why I brought it up, and is reminiscent of “everyone” agreeing that some tactic or skill is irrelevant.
At Red Flag and Maple Flag, the adversary does penetrate to the merge and the pilots need to have those dog-fighting skills honed otherwise Snoopy will kick their butt.
I’ll talk replacing pilots when we mastered an unmanned tank capable of operating in a complex, multi-bogey two dimensional engagement environment, at 25kts and 1-G. . .and that environment is profoundly easier to do than flying an unmanned super-sonic platform in a hyper-G, 360 degree threat and engagement environment.
Heck, I might even consider it if you put your family on an unmanned airliner headed to Aunt Edna’s and don’t give it a thought.
I was not debating whether pilots will still be needed.
But rather the distance of engagement.
Of course pilots will be needed. There is no AI that can replicate human’s dynamic decision process. No sensors that can replicate the fusion between the human eye and brain.
But the idea of dogfights between stealth aircraft with missiles that reach over 100 miles and accompanying drones with their own set of sensors and missiles...seems quite quaint.