Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Welsh speaks at annual Air Force Association conference. Credit: Air Force Association
National Harbor, MD: The Air Force will protect and defend the budgets of the KC-46 airborne tanker, the F-35A Joint Strike Fighter and the nascent Long Range Strike Bomber, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Welsh told a standing room audience of more than 1,200 here.
Oh, and Welsh made clear his view of those arguing we should get rid of an independent Air Force.
“By the way, I’m getting really frustrated hearing this, why do need an Air Force debate,” he said, flashing a slide that listed the number of “airmen” at other services: Army, 34,000; Marines 39,000; Navy 70,000; Air Force 690,000. Just how much does he respect this argument? “Let’s just shoot this one in the head.”
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