Pentagon Budget Again Revives Light-Attack Aircraft Acquisition

Steve Trimble February 21, 2020
light-attack aircraft
Previous attempts to procure a light-attack aircraft have yielded only U.S.-funded acquisitions for other countries, such as the Afghan Air Force A-29 (pictured), but under the Armed Overwatch program it appears a lightly armed observation aircraft finally will be delivered to support U.S. special forces.
Credit: Eydie Sakura/U.S. Air Force
U.S. Special Operations Command (SOCOM) has revived hopes for acquiring a light-attack aircraft fleet only a year after the Air Force abandoned a previous attempt. The Defense Department’s fiscal 2021 budget request includes $106 million for SOCOM to acquire the first five of potentially 76 light...
Steve Trimble

Steve covers military aviation, missiles and space for the Aviation Week Network, based in Washington DC.

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