Contracting Adversary Aircraft, and More from CRS
The US Air Force and Navy might choose to train their fighter pilots in simulations using enemy aircraft that are flown by contractors, the Congressional Research Service said in a new brief.
“Particularly in the case of the Air Force, which has increasingly publicized a shortage of pilots, using contractors to provide adversary air may free up experienced uniformed pilots for other duties,” CRS said. Doing so would also “offer U.S. pilots the opportunity to fly against a diversity of aircraft types without the overhead and expense required to maintain a fleet of planes not otherwise in inventory.” See Contracting the Adversary, CRS Insight, November 16, 2017.
Other new or updated products of the Congressional Research Service include the following.
Zimbabwe: A Military-Compelled Transition?, CRS Insight, November 16, 2017
Private Flood Insurance and the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), CRS Insight, updated November 17, 2017
The Individual Mandate for Health Insurance Coverage: In Brief, updated November 16, 2017
Tax Incentives for Charitable Giving in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (H.R. 1), CRS Insight, November 17, 2017
Monuments and Memorials Authorized and Completed Under the Commemorative Works Act in the District of Columbia, updated November 17, 2017
Monuments and Memorials Authorized Under the Commemorative Works Act in the District of Columbia: Current Development of In-Progress and Lapsed Works, updated November 17, 2017
OPEC and Non-OPEC Crude Oil Production Agreement: Compliance Status, CRS Insight, November 16, 2017
Satellite imagery of RAF Lakenheath reveals new construction of a security perimeter around ten protective aircraft shelters in the designated nuclear area, the latest measure in a series of upgrades as the base prepares for the ability to store U.S. nuclear weapons.
It will take consistent leadership and action to navigate the complex dangers in the region and to avoid what many analysts considered to be an increasingly possible outcome, a nuclear conflict in East Asia.
Getting into a shutdown is the easy part, getting out is much harder. Both sides will be looking to pin responsibility on each other, and the court of public opinion will have a major role to play as to who has the most leverage for getting us out.
How the United States responds to China’s nuclear buildup will shape the global nuclear balance for the rest of the century.