State of the Air Force 2025
The unveiling of a new, sixth-gen fighter jet bodes well for more airpower investment, but readiness problems and funding questions persist.
Audrey Decker | April 18, 2025 05:59 AM ET
Air Force Defense Budget Technology
The Air Force is prepping for a potential showdown with China, seeking cutting-edge technology like stealthy jets and AI-powered drone wingmen. Just two months into the new presidential administration, it learned it will have a new weapon in its arsenal: the first sixth-generation fighter jet.
President Donald Trump, flanked by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and a rendering of the F-47 peeking through a shadowy background, called the jet “virtually unseeable” with “unprecedented power.”
“America’s enemies will never see it coming,” Trump said during the Oval Office ceremony. “Hopefully we won’t have to use it for that purpose, but you have to have it. And if it ever happens, they won’t know what the hell hit them.”
Trump's public stamp of approval of the F-47, named in part after the 47th president, signals a promising future for Air Force investment. But challenges lie ahead as the service balances high-ticket modernization programs, shifting budget priorities, workforce reductions, and an aging fleet.
https://www.defenseone.com/policy/2025/04/state-air-force-2025/404671/?oref=d1-related-article
