{"id":20514,"date":"2021-12-23T23:20:21","date_gmt":"2021-12-23T23:20:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/uncategorized\/2021\/12\/23\/the-air-force-is-ready-to-retire-four-e-8c-joint-stars-jets-in-2022\/"},"modified":"2026-08-07T20:31:27","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T20:31:27","slug":"the-air-force-is-ready-to-retire-four-e-8c-joint-stars-jets-in-2022","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/news\/your-air-force\/2021\/12\/23\/the-air-force-is-ready-to-retire-four-e-8c-joint-stars-jets-in-2022\/","title":{"rendered":"The Air Force is ready to retire four E-8C Joint STARS jets in 2022"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Air Force has given the all-clear to begin retiring the fleet of E-8C Joint STARS aircraft at Robins Air Force Base, Georgia, the latest step in a yearslong debate over the fate of ground target-tracking planes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Four jets \u2014 a quarter of the total fleet \u2014 will head to the boneyard by September, though an exact date hasn\u2019t been scheduled yet, the base said Tuesday. Their crews will be shuffled to other career fields as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cNew mission requirements and capabilities are already reimagining the \u2026 battlefield,\u201d Col. Michelle Carns, commander of the 461st Air Control Wing, said in a release Tuesday. \u201cThe men and women of the 461st ACW are poised to provide unrivaled expertise to usher in that vision.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/news\/your-air-force\/2021\/05\/30\/air-force-to-replace-jstars-units-in-georgia-with-new-tech\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"167\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/5056735.jpg.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">Air Force to replace JSTARS units in Georgia with new tech<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">The Air Force plans to begin retiring the JSTARS aircraft beginning with four planes in fiscal 2022, acting Air Force Secretary John P. Roth said.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Joint Surveillance Target Attack Radar System planes have played a key role in supporting the Army\u2019s ground operations overseas since the 1990s, helping to direct movement around a combat zone and alert troops to potential targets and threats.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The service ran a competition to replace them with a more modern airframe but decided to end it in 2018, fearing the planes could be vulnerable to surface-to-air missiles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Typical Joint STARS missions require 21 people onboard, including three to fly the plane and 18 to handle tasks like navigation, managing the air-to-ground radar, moving target identification and threat analysis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Those airmen will get the option to switch to other jobs at Robins, the Air Force\u2019s only Joint STARS base, or to transfer elsewhere. John Roth, then the acting Air Force secretary, previewed the plan in May.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">New units slated to arrive at Robins include an Air National Guard air control squadron focused on the Middle East, North Africa and Central and South Asia; an active duty group designed to create new electronic warfare technology; an active duty squadron to pilot the E-11 Battlefield Airborne Communications Node aircraft that acts as a flying radio; and a complex dedicated to the Advanced Battle Management System.<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/air\/2021\/08\/19\/new-us-air-force-secretary-to-shake-up-advanced-battle-management-program\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"180\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/200901-F-WJ663-0103.jpg.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">New US Air Force secretary to shake up Advanced Battle Management Program<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">\u201cI want to focus it more on specific operational return on investment,\u201d Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall told Defense News.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">ABMS was first conceived as a potential successor to ground and airborne target-tracking planes, but has taken on new life as a catch-all array of hardware and software that links aircraft, satellites and munitions together in combat. But the concept is still largely in development, and it isn\u2019t clear what jobs airmen would take on until it matures further.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe air and space systems that make up the ABMS network will include a fusion center and associated supporting activities,\u201d the Air Force said in 2018. \u201cThe network will also include some remotely piloted aircraft at Robins with sensors capable of collecting and transmitting information from the battlefield.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Active duty airmen with the 461st Air Control Wing can either join the new units or move to a different job at another base, the Air Force said. Georgia Air National Guardsmen with the 116th Air Control Wing will retrain for ABMS-related battle management and command-and-control roles at Robins. The base\u2019s staffing level is not expected to change.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Robins first needs to pass an environmental inspection before bringing on future missions. That planning could be done as early as October.<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/air\/2021\/07\/21\/to-afford-next-gen-combat-aircraft-the-us-air-force-will-make-cuts-to-current-isr-inventory\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"169\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Reaper.jpg_2223dd.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">To afford next-gen combat aircraft, the US Air Force will make cuts to ISR inventory<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">The Air Force plans to drop from 60 to 56 MQ-9 Reaper combat lines in fiscal 2022 as the U.S. military decreases its presence in the Middle East.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">House and Senate lawmakers warned in the 2022 defense policy bill that the Air Force needs to keep the E-8C fleet flying until a replacement is in the works, and worried that pulling it from operations too soon would shortchange commanders who need airborne intelligence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The legislation did not expressly ban the Air Force from getting rid of the planes, securing a win for service leaders who have pushed to dump Joint STARS for newer technology.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The bill was still awaiting President Joe Biden\u2019s signature as of press time Thursday.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Airmen associated with the aircraft can switch to other jobs at Robins Air Force Base or transfer elsewhere.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":42870,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-nofollow":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_acf":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":67,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_smg_distribution_targets":{"2":{"categories":["your-military","news","left-column","home"],"primary_category":"your-military"}}},"categories":[101,24,88,16,26,67],"tags":[],"coauthors":[3392],"class_list":["post-20514","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-daily-news-roundup","category-home","category-left-column","category-news","category-newsletters","category-your-air-force"],"acf":{"subheadline":"","legacy_arc_id":"OEJ2UK5BHNH5FLRL3ZPHHZFSIE","arc_canonical_url":"\/news\/your-air-force\/2021\/12\/23\/the-air-force-is-ready-to-retire-four-e-8c-joint-stars-jets-in-2022\/","remove_feature_photo":false,"is_sponsored":false,"subtype":"","redirect_url":"","disable_inline_ads":false,"native_logo_pretext":"Presented By:"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.0 (Yoast SEO v28.1) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>The Air Force is ready to retire four E-8C Joint STARS jets in 2022 - Air Force TImes<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Airmen associated with the aircraft can switch to other jobs at Robins Air Force Base or transfer elsewhere.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Air Force is ready to retire four E-8C Joint STARS jets in 2022\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Airmen associated with the aircraft can switch to other jobs at Robins Air Force Base or transfer elsewhere.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/news\/your-air-force\/2021\/12\/23\/the-air-force-is-ready-to-retire-four-e-8c-joint-stars-jets-in-2022\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Air Force TImes\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2021-12-23T23:20:21+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-08-07T20:31:27+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Rachel S. 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