{"id":59725,"date":"2017-08-10T01:41:20","date_gmt":"2017-08-10T01:41:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/smg.go-vip.net\/defensenews\/uncategorized\/2017\/08\/10\/whats-the-air-forces-next-step-after-its-light-attack-demo-a-combat-demonstration\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T00:27:56","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T00:27:56","slug":"whats-the-air-forces-next-step-after-its-light-attack-demo-a-combat-demonstration","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/air\/2017\/08\/10\/whats-the-air-forces-next-step-after-its-light-attack-demo-a-combat-demonstration\/","title":{"rendered":"The Air Force\u2019s next step after its light attack demo: A combat trial"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">HOLLOMAN AIR FORCE BASE, N.M. \u2014 This month, three industry teams will hand over four different light attack aircraft to Air Force pilots for a series of flight demonstrations to test just how well the aircraft can prosecute targets on the ground while operating in austere desert environments. Those that prove their mettle will move on until the next phase of the experiment: a combat demonstration in the Middle East.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Specifically, planes could participate in the fight against the Islamic State and other terrorist groups, Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson told reporters Wednesday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Air Force won\u2019t know for sure whether it will pursue a combat demonstration until the experiment at Holloman Air Force Base is finished. Then, the service will take the data it has collected and assess the aircraft cost, capability and the manufacturer\u2019s production capacity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThat data is intended to inform strategic decisions. It will also tell us whether we take this to the next step, to what we call a combat experiment, and whether any of these aircraft are ready for that,\u201d Wilson said. \u201cThat combat experiment could take place early next year.\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\/digital-show-dailies\/air-warfare-symposium\/2017\/03\/03\/air-force-leaders-confirm-light-attack-aircraft-demo-to-take-off-this-summer\/\" 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\/635701567141630753-scorpionjpg.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 leaders confirm light attack aircraft demo to take off this summer<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">The Air Force\u2019s light attack aircraft flight demonstration is officially on the books, with an experiment scheduled this summer at Holloman Air Force Base, N.M.<\/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\">Reporters headed to Holloman AFB on Wednesday to get a glimpse of the four aircraft participating in the demo: the A-29 from Sierra Nevada Corp. and Embraer, the AT-802L Longsword by L3 and Air Tractor, and the AT-6 Wolverine and Scorpion jet, both by Textron.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">They weren\u2019t the only interested parties. Several top Air Force officials also visited the base to observe the experiment, including Wilson; Chief of Staff Gen. David Goldfein, who flew both the A-29 and AT-6 today; Gen. Mike Holmes, who heads Air Combat Command; and Lt. Gen. Arnold Bunch, the service\u2019s top uniformed acquisition official.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Representatives from about a dozen international partner militaries also attended, including members from Canada, Australia, the United Arab Emirates and Paraguay.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Although there is no real winner of the light attack demo, the A-29 Super Tucano and AT-6 Wolverine already seem to be a step ahead of the other options in terms of moving on to the next phase. Both aircraft have been categorized as \u201ctier one\u201d by the service for the purpose of the experiment, meaning that they meet all of the Air Force\u2019s objectives, which include the ability to take off from unimproved fields and having an ejection seat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Should the Air Force decide to press on with a combat demonstration, it would likely continue to evaluate those two planes, Bunch said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIf the two \u2018tier ones\u2019 are successful in executing the first phase of the experiment and they want to continue to participate in the experiment, we plan to work with the combatant commanders to utilize both of those resources if they want to go forward,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But the \u201ctier two\u201d offerings \u2014 the Scorpion jet and AT-802L \u2014 won\u2019t necessarily be left behind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI believe the tier twos are going to learn from this. I believe they are going to understand what we were looking for,\u201d Bunch said. \u201cThey now have our criteria that were in the invitation to participate, so I think they\u2019ll analyze that, they\u2019ll go back and look at their systems, and then they can advance those.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Or those companies may choose to go a different direction with their platforms. The experiment\u2019s criteria were heavily centered around the needs of Air Combat Command, Bunch acknowledged. However, the requirements of other potential customers, such as the special operations community or international partners, may be different.<\/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\/2017\/08\/08\/industry-eyeing-opportunity-to-sell-light-attack-planes-tech-to-socom\/\" 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\/beechcraft-at-6.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\">Industry eyeing opportunity to sell light attack planes, tech to SOCOM<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">The Air Force and Special Operations Command (SOCOM) have noted an emerging opportunity to sell complimentary light attack technology \u2014 or potentially additional aircraft \u2014 to the special operations community, and defense contractors are hungry to learn more.<\/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\">If Wilson and Goldfein approve a combat demonstration, Air Combat Command (ACC) will take the reins from Air Force Materiel Command, which is executing the experiment at Holloman, Holmes said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Col. Michael \u201cStarbaby\u201d Pietrucha, ACC\u2019s staff lead for light attack, said the command is already starting to consider how it could execute a combat demonstration. Though much is still to be determined, the demo will likely involve bringing light attack aircraft to the Middle East and having it fill in for other aircraft, like the F-16 or A-10, when low-end missions need to be executed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A future combat exercise might also emphasize the aircraft\u2019s ability to network with coalition ground forces.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIf we decide to move forward with a combat demo, we will take what we\u2019ve learned \u2026 and then take that forward with some kind of a low cost network,\u201d Holmes said. \u201cIt might be a cellphone. It might be an iPad, taking advantage of networks that are already there in some of these places.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-smg-jwplayer-video\"><atype-video-jwplayer nostick=\"true\" playlisturl=\"https:\/\/cdn.jwplayer.com\/v2\/playlists\/fCzRqMW8?tags=4d2ebcd4-e4f3-4bdd-8898-1dce5a172668\" aspectratio=\"16 \/ 9\" mute autostart=\"false\"><\/atype-video-jwplayer><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Air power off-the-shelf<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\"><p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">I caught a quick video of <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/GenDaveGoldfein?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@GenDaveGoldfein<\/a> taxing after his AT-6 flight. He knows how to make an entrance, I give him that. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/Kgyi92Imj8\">pic.twitter.com\/Kgyi92Imj8<\/a><\/p>&mdash; Valerie Insinna (@ValerieInsinna) <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/ValerieInsinna\/status\/895307817875382272?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">August 9, 2017<\/a><\/blockquote><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.x.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>This month, three industry teams will hand over four different light attack aircraft to Air Force pilots for a series of flight demonstrations that will test their ability to prosecute targets on the ground while operating in austere desert environments.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":29587,"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":7,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_smg_distribution_targets":{"4":{"categories":["your-air-force","news"],"primary_category":"your-air-force"}}},"categories":[7,160,11,12,47,36],"tags":[],"coauthors":[3384],"class_list":["post-59725","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-air","category-daily-news-roundup","category-global","category-industry","category-mideast-africa","category-newsletters"],"acf":{"subheadline":"","legacy_arc_id":"Q7BT6ALW2VGZTML4MB7ONIDOWY","arc_canonical_url":"\/air\/2017\/08\/10\/whats-the-air-forces-next-step-after-its-light-attack-demo-a-combat-demonstration\/","remove_feature_photo":false,"is_sponsored":false,"subtype":"","redirect_url":"","disable_inline_ads":false,"native_logo_pretext":"Presented 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