Air Force stepping out of comfort zone.

• Author: Erwin, Sandra I.
• Position: Defense Watch

Throughout the blue-suit community, there is an undeniable and growing recognition that the Air Force is changing, not just by design, but also in an effort to adjust to these tumultuous times.

The shift so far is subtle but possibly consequential. It is about making the Air Force less about fighter jocks and more about intelligence specialists, "battle management" experts and unmanned aircraft operators. It is about giving airmen and women more "expeditionary" combat skills, and training them to run truck convoys alongside soldiers and Marines.

Offering further substantiation that the Air Force is stepping out of its comfort zone is the recently released videogame, "USAF: Air Dominance." The game, intended to woo young recruits, purposely was created to illustrate to prospective airmen that the Air Force has more than just glamorous dog-fighting jet pilots.

"We want to show that there are other things out there, like unmanned air vehicles and cargo planes," Sgt. Marv Daugherty, with the Air Force Recruiting Service, told National Defense. The game lets potential recruits pilot the premier F-22 air-superiority fighter, operate a Predator UAV and fly a C-17 transport plane on a humanitarian relief mission.

"Our Air Force is different," asserted Lt. Gen. Donald K. Wetekam, deputy chief of staff for installations and logistics.

With the Army strapped by the hectic pace of operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Air Force needed to step up to the plate, he noted. "We are providing 25 percent of the Army's convoy support in Iraq," said Wetekam. "It's not one of our traditional missions, but it demonstrates the flexibility of our airmen."

These developments also go hand-in-hand with the latest move by the Air Force to rebalance its mix of active-duty and reserve forces. The Reserves and Air National Guard gradually will see their fighter squadrons downsize in favor of missions that are considered more pertinent to the U.S. war on terrorism.

Many Guard units currently operate aircraft that are more than 30 years old. This opens up a window of opportunity for tactical fighter wings to transition to other "new relevant missions areas," said Lt. Gen. Daniel James III, director of the Air National Guard. These new areas include space, command-and-control, intelligence, reconnaissance and surveillance. The service, for example, plans to increase the number of Predator squadrons in the years ahead. A growing percentage of UAV operators are likely to be...