US Air Force outlines the fighter fleet it needs by 2035

The U.S. Air Force says it needs 1,509 combat-coded fighters, or jets assigned to combat units, by 2035, according to a new force structure report the service sent to Congress Oct. 16.

Lt. Gen. David Tabor, the Air Force’s deputy chief of staff for plans and programs, described the report at an Oct. 20 Pentagon roundtable with reporters, Air & Space Forces Magazine reported . Reporters did not receive a copy of the report, and the service did not respond to a Defense News request for it by publication.

F-35s would make up about 40% of the fleet by 2035, up from about 30% today, according to figures Tabor cited. F-22s and their replacement, the F-47, would make up about 20%. The service plans to replace its F-22s with about the same number of F-47s, Tabor said.

F-15s and F-16s would split the remaining 40% about evenly. The figures exclude A-10s, which are not currently part of the Air Force’s plans for 2035.

Tabor said the analysis was based on what regional commanders say they need to carry out their missions at medium risk. The military rates risk on four levels: low, medium, significant and high. At medium risk, forces would likely achieve their goals but could be strained in long operations.

The analysis began before the war with Iran this year and was not driven by it, Tabor said. He cautioned that the 1,509 figure is likely to change with world events, new requirements and the rise of new technology.

Reaching the goal depends on Congress funding the jets and on Lockheed Martin and Boeing building them in time, Tabor said. Industry has “assured us that they can, and we believe them,” he told reporters, according to Air & Space Forces Magazine.

Air Force officials have long said the service needs to buy 72 fighters a year . The fiscal 2027 request seeks 38 F-35s and 24 F-15EXs , a total of 62. Tabor said purchases can increase over time.

The budget counts on $2.34 billion to pay for 14 of the 38 F-35s. That money would come through a reconciliation bill , a budget package that can pass the Senate with a simple majority. If that bill fails, Tabor said, the service could pull money from other programs or push the buys to 2028.

The Air Force is seeking multiyear contracts for the F-35 and F-15EX, a request now pending in Congress. Tabor said such deals would give industry more stability to expand production.

Older F-16s reach the end of their service lives in the mid-2030s, Tabor said, but the service has not decided whether to buy a new-build F-16, tentatively called the F-16G. That decision likely won’t come in the fiscal 2028 budget, he said.

The 1,509 figure does not count Collaborative Combat Aircraft , or CCAs, the drone wingmen that will fly alongside crewed fighters. The Air Force plans to field 500 CCAs by 2032. Tabor said the drones are not yet changing the fighter requirement but could reduce it in future reports.

Michael Scanlon is a defense journalist covering air and space warfare. A former U.S. Air Force A-10 crew chief, he has supported land and sea programs for the U.S. Army, Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard.

美国空军在10月16日向国会提交的一份新的部队结构报告中表示，到2035年，美国空军需要1509架作战型战斗机，即分配给作战部队的喷气式飞机。

据《空军与太空部队杂志》报道，空军负责计划和项目的副参谋长戴维·塔博尔中将在10月20日五角大楼举行的记者圆桌会议上介绍了这份报告。记者们没有收到报告副本，截至发稿时，空军方面也未回复《防务新闻》的索取请求。

根据塔博尔引用的数据，到2035年，F-35战机将占空军机队的约40%，高于目前的约30%。F-22及其替代机型F-47将占约20%。塔博尔表示，空军计划用数量大致相同的F-47战机替换现有的F-22战机。

F-15 和 F-16 将大致平分剩余的 40% 份额。这些数字不包括 A-10，因为 A-10 目前不在空军 2035 年的计划之内。

塔博尔表示，该分析基于地区指挥官们提出的在中等风险下执行任务所需的资源。军方将风险分为四个等级：低、中、高和重。在中等风险下，部队很可能实现目标，但在长时间的行动中可能会面临资源紧张。

塔博尔表示，这项分析始于今年与伊朗的战争之前，并非受战争影响。他提醒说，1509这个数字可能会随着世界局势、新需求和新技术的出现而改变。

塔博尔表示，能否实现这一目标取决于国会是否拨款购买这些战机，以及洛克希德·马丁公司和波音公司能否按时完成生产。据《空军与太空部队杂志》报道，他告诉记者，业界“已经向我们保证他们能够做到，我们也相信他们”。

空军官员长期以来一直表示，空军每年需要采购72架战斗机。2027财年的采购申请要求采购38架F-35和24架F-15EX，共计62架。塔博尔表示，采购数量可能会随着时间的推移而增加。

预算中预计需要23.4亿美元用于购买38架F-35战斗机中的14架。这笔资金将通过一项预算协调法案拨付，该法案是一项预算方案，只需参议院简单多数即可通过。塔博尔表示，如果该法案未能通过，空军可能会从其他项目中挪用资金，或者将采购推迟到2028年。

空军正在寻求F-35和F-15EX的多年期合同，目前该申请正在国会审议中。塔博尔表示，此类合同将为业界提供更大的稳定性，从而扩大生产规模。

塔博尔表示，老旧的F-16战机将在2030年代中期达到服役年限，但空军尚未决定是否采购新型F-16战机（暂定名为F-16G）。他表示，这项决定可能不会在2028财年预算中做出。

1509架这个数字并不包括协同作战飞机（CCA），即与有人驾驶战斗机并肩作战的无人机僚机。空军计划到2032年部署500架CCA。塔博尔表示，无人机目前尚未改变战斗机的需求量，但未来报告可能会减少这一需求。

迈克尔·斯坎伦是一位报道空天战的国防记者。他曾是美国空军A-10攻击机的机组长，并为美国陆军、海军、海军陆战队和海岸警卫队的陆地和海上项目提供支持。