RAF MILDENHALL, England — The Air Force plans to cut 30 generals from its rolls as part of a new force-shaping plan, according to the service’s top civilian leader.
During a visit to RAF Mildenhall on Wednesday, Secretary of the Air Force Michael W. Wynne said that the Air Force is currently implementing a plan for a smaller, more lethal force.
“We are cutting the force from top to bottom, in fact, leading with 30 general officers,” Wynne said. “The officer field and the enlisted field are imbalanced, so it is a working process to make sure that we have force balance across the spectrum.”
Wynne did not speculate on the number of personnel cuts expected to come, but said the Air Force will become more agile and smarter in the next five years with the transformation.
“We’re going to operate more efficiently,” he said.
Wynne made a stop at the air base Wednesday to film some American Forces Network commercials and to speak to airmen.
While there, he also spoke about the future of the Air Force in Europe, saying he didn’t have any big plans ahead.
“I don’t see any large muscle movements for the bases in Europe, but on the other hand I do see growth and reductions in personnel as missions change and as the operation tempo changes,” he said.
Wynne said that Europe would continue to play a major role for the Air Force, especially as the United States works closely with NATO’s new partners in eastern Europe.
“There are opportunities that I think will happen. I don’t think they’re going to be on a full-time basis, but they will probably be more on a rotational basis,” he said about the future bases.
He also talked about the Air Force’s desire to build a new refueling aircraft. An improved refueling tanker that can transport not only fuel but also cargo and personnel is the wave of the future, Wynne said in an interview with Stars and Stripes.
“As well as being a refueling operation, it can self-deploy,” he spoke about the new tanker.
These tankers will eventually replace the aging KC-135 Stratotankers, which were first used by the Air Force in the 1950s. Requests for proposals for the new tanker should come out as soon as late fall, he said.
The Air Force has already made a commitment to limit production of the C-17 transportation aircraft at 180, he said, in order to fund the new tanker.
“We really need our first new tanker more than we need our 181st C-17,” he said.
