{"id":82405,"date":"2019-03-13T17:55:55","date_gmt":"2019-03-13T17:55:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/uncategorized\/2019\/03\/13\/air-force-to-buy-handful-of-light-attack-planes-but-will-a-bigger-program-follow\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T00:16:02","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T00:16:02","slug":"air-force-to-buy-handful-of-light-attack-planes-but-will-a-bigger-program-follow","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/news\/your-air-force\/2019\/03\/13\/air-force-to-buy-handful-of-light-attack-planes-but-will-a-bigger-program-follow\/","title":{"rendered":"Air Force to buy handful of light-attack planes, but will a bigger program follow?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">WASHINGTON \u2014 The U.S. Air Force will procure a handful of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.defensenews.com\/air\/2018\/08\/06\/the-light-attack-aircraft-competition-will-be-down-to-two-competitors\/\" target=_blank>A-29 Super Tucano planes from Sierra Nevada Corp. and AT-6 Wolverines from Textron<\/a> to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.defensenews.com\/newsletters\/2019\/01\/30\/the-air-forces-light-attack-experiment-could-be-expanded-to-feature-drones-helicopters-and-more-aircraft\/\" target=_blank>continue light-attack demonstrations<\/a>, the service\u2019s top general said Wednesday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That purchase provides a modest, but much-needed <a href=\"https:\/\/www.defensenews.com\/air\/2018\/12\/18\/start-of-air-forces-light-attack-plane-competition-pushed-back-until-next-year\/\" target=_blank>show of confidence for the two companies<\/a>, which have invested internal funding over the past two years on the Air Force\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.defensenews.com\/air\/2019\/01\/18\/the-air-forces-plans-to-begin-a-light-attack-aircraft-competition-are-now-deferred-indefinitely\/\" target=_blank>light-attack experiment<\/a> and are still hoping the service moves forward with a bigger buy of light-attack aircraft.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Air Force plans to place small detachments of AT-6 and A-29 turboprop planes at Nellis Air Force Base \u2014 the Nevada-based installation that hosts Red Flag and other training exercises \u2014 and Hurlburt Field, Florida, where Air Force Special Operations Command is based, Chief of Staff Gen. Dave Goldfein said during a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Air Force spokeswoman Ann Stefanek told Defense News that the service would likely buy two or three of each aircraft, but Goldfein told lawmakers at the hearing that the exact numbers would be dependent on the price tag of the planes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe United States Marine Corps has already said they\u2019re joining us,\u201d Goldfein said. \u201cWe\u2019re going to invite allies and partners, and with the authorities you\u2019ve given us now that we own those prototypes, we will continue to experiment to build the interoperable network that we\u2019ve already advanced.\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\/defensenews\/smr\/federal-budget\/2019\/03\/12\/air-force-puts-35-million-in-new-budget-for-light-attack-experiment\/\" 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=\"200\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/3654055.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\">US Air Force asks for $35 million in new budget for light-attack experiment<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">The Air Force wants to look more broadly at what industry could provide, as well as study what international partners would commit to buy.<\/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\">Funding for the AT-6 and A-29 will come from leftover money from previous years\u2019 budgets. Congress has appropriated about $200 million for the experimentation campaign so far, Stefanek said. Of that, about $60 million in fiscal 2018 research and development funds and $100 million in fiscal 2019 procurement funds still remain, and will be used by the service to finance the AT-6 and A-29 buy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Although most of the light-attack experiment centered around turboprop planes, the Air Force is interested in expanding the exercise to include drones, rotorcraft and turbojet planes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The FY20 budget request calls for $35 million to continue the light-attack experiment. Part of those funds would go toward a market analysis of global demand for light-attack platforms, Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson said.<\/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\/2019\/02\/01\/the-us-air-force-wants-to-continue-its-light-attack-experiment-will-industry-buy-in\/\" 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=\"225\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AT6-Goldfein.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\">The US Air Force wants to continue its light-attack experiment. Will industry buy in?<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">Not all big risks come with big rewards.<\/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\">Then the service would go through a similar process as it did with earlier portions of the experiment, soliciting companies to offer off-the-shelf technologies and using special, congressionally approved authorities to partner with them for demonstrations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The idea is that the Air Force will have solidified exactly what light-attack capabilities it needs sometime around 2022 through 2024, when it plans to procure such assets, Goldfein said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">However, some lawmakers criticized Air Force leadership for what they perceived as its sluggishness in moving to the procurement phase of the experiment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Sen. Jerry Moran, R-Kan., said that when he saw a recent report by the Pentagon\u2019s weapons testing agency that cited a plan for the Air Force to buy upward of 300 light-attack aircraft, he considered it as proof that the rapid acquisition process was working. However, recent statements by Air Force leaders on the future of the program made him concerned that the service was abandoning light-attack aircraft procurement, he noted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIt seems to me that there is a schizophrenia in the Air Force about light attack. The messages are mixed,\u201d Moran said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Goldfein responded that the service simply didn\u2019t have enough information to commit to a program of record at this point, and wanted to do more work exploring the requirements of partner nations and establishing an interoperable network with them before making a final decision.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWhen you compare what we\u2019ve done compared to a normal timeline for acquisition that would take five to 10 years, we\u2019re two years into this,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The service will buy a couple of AT-6s and A-29s for further demos, says the service&#8217;s top general.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":72276,"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":[]},"categories":[101,24,89,16,26,67],"tags":[],"coauthors":[3305],"class_list":["post-82405","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-daily-news-roundup","category-home","category-middle-column","category-news","category-newsletters","category-your-air-force"],"acf":{"subheadline":"","legacy_arc_id":"BNGDZJUWHVCZPFT254DBIVPUJI","arc_canonical_url":"\/smr\/federal-budget\/2019\/03\/13\/air-force-to-buy-handful-of-light-attack-planes-but-will-a-bigger-program-follow\/","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>Air Force to buy handful of light-attack planes, but will a bigger program follow? - Air Force TImes<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The service will buy a couple of AT-6s and A-29s for further demos, says the service&#039;s top general.\" \/>\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=\"Air Force to buy handful of light-attack planes, but will a bigger program follow?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The service will buy a couple of AT-6s and A-29s for further demos, says the service&#039;s top general.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/news\/your-air-force\/2019\/03\/13\/air-force-to-buy-handful-of-light-attack-planes-but-will-a-bigger-program-follow\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Air Force TImes\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2019-03-13T17:55:55+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-08-08T00:16:02+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Valerie Insinna\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Valerie Insinna\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\n\t    \"@context\": \"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\n\t    \"@graph\": [\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"Article\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/airforcetimes\\\/news\\\/your-air-force\\\/2019\\\/03\\\/13\\\/air-force-to-buy-handful-of-light-attack-planes-but-will-a-bigger-program-follow\\\/#article\",\n\t            \"isPartOf\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/airforcetimes\\\/news\\\/your-air-force\\\/2019\\\/03\\\/13\\\/air-force-to-buy-handful-of-light-attack-planes-but-will-a-bigger-program-follow\\\/\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"author\": {\n\t                \"name\": \"migration\",\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/airforcetimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"headline\": \"Air Force to buy handful of light-attack planes, but will a bigger program follow?\",\n\t            \"datePublished\": \"2019-03-13T17:55:55+00:00\",\n\t            \"dateModified\": \"2026-08-08T00:16:02+00:00\",\n\t            \"mainEntityOfPage\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/airforcetimes\\\/news\\\/your-air-force\\\/2019\\\/03\\\/13\\\/air-force-to-buy-handful-of-light-attack-planes-but-will-a-bigger-program-follow\\\/\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"wordCount\": 615,\n\t            \"commentCount\": 0,\n\t            \"publisher\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/airforcetimes\\\/#organization\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/airforcetimes\\\/news\\\/your-air-force\\\/2019\\\/03\\\/13\\\/air-force-to-buy-handful-of-light-attack-planes-but-will-a-bigger-program-follow\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"thumbnailUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/AT-6-A-29-composite.jpg.jpg\",\n\t            \"articleSection\": [\n\t                \"Daily News Roundup\",\n\t                \"Home\",\n\t                \"Middle Column\",\n\t                \"News\",\n\t                \"Newsletters\",\n\t                \"Your Air Force\"\n\t            ],\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t            \"potentialAction\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"CommentAction\",\n\t                    \"name\": \"Comment\",\n\t                    \"target\": [\n\t                        \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/airforcetimes\\\/news\\\/your-air-force\\\/2019\\\/03\\\/13\\\/air-force-to-buy-handful-of-light-attack-planes-but-will-a-bigger-program-follow\\\/#respond\"\n\t                    ]\n\t                }\n\t            ]\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"WebPage\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/airforcetimes\\\/news\\\/your-air-force\\\/2019\\\/03\\\/13\\\/air-force-to-buy-handful-of-light-attack-planes-but-will-a-bigger-program-follow\\\/\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/airforcetimes\\\/news\\\/your-air-force\\\/2019\\\/03\\\/13\\\/air-force-to-buy-handful-of-light-attack-planes-but-will-a-bigger-program-follow\\\/\",\n\t            \"name\": \"Air Force to buy handful of light-attack planes, but will a bigger program follow? - Air Force TImes\",\n\t            \"isPartOf\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/airforcetimes\\\/#website\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"primaryImageOfPage\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/airforcetimes\\\/news\\\/your-air-force\\\/2019\\\/03\\\/13\\\/air-force-to-buy-handful-of-light-attack-planes-but-will-a-bigger-program-follow\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/airforcetimes\\\/news\\\/your-air-force\\\/2019\\\/03\\\/13\\\/air-force-to-buy-handful-of-light-attack-planes-but-will-a-bigger-program-follow\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"thumbnailUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/AT-6-A-29-composite.jpg.jpg\",\n\t            \"datePublished\": \"2019-03-13T17:55:55+00:00\",\n\t            \"dateModified\": \"2026-08-08T00:16:02+00:00\",\n\t            \"description\": \"The service will buy a couple of AT-6s and A-29s for further demos, says the service's top general.\",\n\t            \"breadcrumb\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/airforcetimes\\\/news\\\/your-air-force\\\/2019\\\/03\\\/13\\\/air-force-to-buy-handful-of-light-attack-planes-but-will-a-bigger-program-follow\\\/#breadcrumb\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t            \"potentialAction\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ReadAction\",\n\t                    \"target\": [\n\t                        \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/airforcetimes\\\/news\\\/your-air-force\\\/2019\\\/03\\\/13\\\/air-force-to-buy-handful-of-light-attack-planes-but-will-a-bigger-program-follow\\\/\"\n\t                    ]\n\t                }\n\t            ]\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/airforcetimes\\\/news\\\/your-air-force\\\/2019\\\/03\\\/13\\\/air-force-to-buy-handful-of-light-attack-planes-but-will-a-bigger-program-follow\\\/#primaryimage\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/AT-6-A-29-composite.jpg.jpg\",\n\t            \"contentUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/AT-6-A-29-composite.jpg.jpg\"\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"BreadcrumbList\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/airforcetimes\\\/news\\\/your-air-force\\\/2019\\\/03\\\/13\\\/air-force-to-buy-handful-of-light-attack-planes-but-will-a-bigger-program-follow\\\/#breadcrumb\",\n\t            \"itemListElement\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t                    \"position\": 1,\n\t                    \"name\": \"Home\",\n\t                    \"item\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/airforcetimes\\\/\",\n\t                    \"ad_zone\": \"home\"\n\t                },\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t                    \"position\": 2,\n\t                    \"name\": \"News\",\n\t                    \"item\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/airforcetimes\\\/news\\\/\",\n\t                    \"ad_zone\": \"news\"\n\t                },\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t                    \"position\": 3,\n\t                    \"name\": \"Your Air Force\",\n\t                    \"item\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/airforcetimes\\\/news\\\/your-air-force\\\/\",\n\t                    \"ad_zone\": \"your-air-force\"\n\t                },\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t                    \"position\": 4,\n\t                    \"name\": \"Air Force to buy handful of light-attack planes, but will a bigger program follow?\"\n\t                }\n\t            ]\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"WebSite\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/airforcetimes\\\/#website\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/airforcetimes\\\/\",\n\t            \"name\": \"Air Force TImes\",\n\t            \"description\": \"Independent News For Airmen | Air Force Times\",\n\t            \"publisher\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/airforcetimes\\\/#organization\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"potentialAction\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"SearchAction\",\n\t                    \"target\": {\n\t                        \"@type\": \"EntryPoint\",\n\t                        \"urlTemplate\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/airforcetimes\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"\n\t                    },\n\t                    \"query-input\": {\n\t                        \"@type\": \"PropertyValueSpecification\",\n\t                        \"valueRequired\": true,\n\t                        \"valueName\": \"search_term_string\"\n\t                    }\n\t                }\n\t            ],\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\"\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"Organization\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/airforcetimes\\\/#organization\",\n\t            \"name\": \"Air Force TImes\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/airforcetimes\\\/\",\n\t            \"logo\": {\n\t                \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t                \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/airforcetimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\n\t                \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/air-logo-white.png\",\n\t                \"contentUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/air-logo-white.png\",\n\t                \"caption\": \"Air Force TImes\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/airforcetimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"\n\t            }\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"Person\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/airforcetimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1\",\n\t            \"name\": \"migration\",\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t                \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=gcf4cb6ee0ec29e49e7a963234e4340ec\",\n\t                \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\n\t                \"contentUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\n\t                \"caption\": \"migration\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/airforcetimes\\\/author\\\/migration\\\/\"\n\t        }\n\t    ]\n\t}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Air Force to buy handful of light-attack planes, but will a bigger program follow? - Air Force TImes","description":"The service will buy a couple of AT-6s and A-29s for further demos, says the service's top general.","robots":{"index":"noindex","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Air Force to buy handful of light-attack planes, but will a bigger program follow?","og_description":"The service will buy a couple of AT-6s and A-29s for further demos, says the service's top general.","og_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/news\/your-air-force\/2019\/03\/13\/air-force-to-buy-handful-of-light-attack-planes-but-will-a-bigger-program-follow\/","og_site_name":"Air Force TImes","article_published_time":"2019-03-13T17:55:55+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-08-08T00:16:02+00:00","author":"Valerie Insinna","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Valerie Insinna","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/news\/your-air-force\/2019\/03\/13\/air-force-to-buy-handful-of-light-attack-planes-but-will-a-bigger-program-follow\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/news\/your-air-force\/2019\/03\/13\/air-force-to-buy-handful-of-light-attack-planes-but-will-a-bigger-program-follow\/"},"author":{"name":"migration","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/#\/schema\/person\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1"},"headline":"Air Force to buy handful of light-attack planes, but will a bigger program follow?","datePublished":"2019-03-13T17:55:55+00:00","dateModified":"2026-08-08T00:16:02+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/news\/your-air-force\/2019\/03\/13\/air-force-to-buy-handful-of-light-attack-planes-but-will-a-bigger-program-follow\/"},"wordCount":615,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/news\/your-air-force\/2019\/03\/13\/air-force-to-buy-handful-of-light-attack-planes-but-will-a-bigger-program-follow\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AT-6-A-29-composite.jpg.jpg","articleSection":["Daily News Roundup","Home","Middle Column","News","Newsletters","Your Air Force"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/news\/your-air-force\/2019\/03\/13\/air-force-to-buy-handful-of-light-attack-planes-but-will-a-bigger-program-follow\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/news\/your-air-force\/2019\/03\/13\/air-force-to-buy-handful-of-light-attack-planes-but-will-a-bigger-program-follow\/","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/news\/your-air-force\/2019\/03\/13\/air-force-to-buy-handful-of-light-attack-planes-but-will-a-bigger-program-follow\/","name":"Air Force to buy handful of light-attack planes, but will a bigger program follow? - Air Force TImes","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/news\/your-air-force\/2019\/03\/13\/air-force-to-buy-handful-of-light-attack-planes-but-will-a-bigger-program-follow\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/news\/your-air-force\/2019\/03\/13\/air-force-to-buy-handful-of-light-attack-planes-but-will-a-bigger-program-follow\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AT-6-A-29-composite.jpg.jpg","datePublished":"2019-03-13T17:55:55+00:00","dateModified":"2026-08-08T00:16:02+00:00","description":"The service will buy a couple of AT-6s and A-29s for further demos, says the service's top general.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/news\/your-air-force\/2019\/03\/13\/air-force-to-buy-handful-of-light-attack-planes-but-will-a-bigger-program-follow\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/news\/your-air-force\/2019\/03\/13\/air-force-to-buy-handful-of-light-attack-planes-but-will-a-bigger-program-follow\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/news\/your-air-force\/2019\/03\/13\/air-force-to-buy-handful-of-light-attack-planes-but-will-a-bigger-program-follow\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AT-6-A-29-composite.jpg.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AT-6-A-29-composite.jpg.jpg"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/news\/your-air-force\/2019\/03\/13\/air-force-to-buy-handful-of-light-attack-planes-but-will-a-bigger-program-follow\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/","ad_zone":"home"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"News","item":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/news\/","ad_zone":"news"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Your Air Force","item":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/news\/your-air-force\/","ad_zone":"your-air-force"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":4,"name":"Air Force to buy handful of light-attack planes, but will a bigger program follow?"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/#website","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/","name":"Air Force TImes","description":"Independent News For Airmen | Air Force Times","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/#organization","name":"Air Force TImes","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/air-logo-white.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/air-logo-white.png","caption":"Air Force TImes"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/#\/schema\/person\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1","name":"migration","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=gcf4cb6ee0ec29e49e7a963234e4340ec","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"migration"},"url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/author\/migration\/"}]}},"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"Air Force TImes","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes","push-errors":false,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AT-6-A-29-composite.jpg.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/82405","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=82405"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/82405\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":82411,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/82405\/revisions\/82411"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/72276"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=82405"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=82405"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=82405"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=82405"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}