Critical seam: organizing air command and control for peer conflict.

The emerging era of great power competition presents a clear mandate for U.S. military forces to prepare for, deter, and, if necessary, prevail in conflict against a peer adversary. Yet the primary enabler of decisive U.S. airpower—its air command and control (C2) system—is not optimized for this kind of fight. While future concepts such as Joint All Domain Command and Control (JADC2) offer a potential path forward in the decades to come, short-term solutions are needed should a crisis arise in the interim. This study analyzes the organization of the current Air C2 system, focusing specifically on the relationship between the Air Operations Center (AOC) and the Wing, to determine the changes needed to improve the system for peer conflict. The author begins with a review of Air C2 history and theory, covering key ideas and events that explain the system as it exists today while drawing attention to areas that are problematic in peer conflict. A thorough analysis is then conducted to characterize Air C2, identify its functions, and demonstrate how the system responds to threats. The findings of the study reveal an excessively high degree of centralization at the AOC, a problem that creates a vulnerable, single point of failure in the Air C2 system. To address this issue, the author argues that the development of a tailored C2 capability at the Wing level is essential. Ultimately, recommendations are provided as to how this might be achieved quickly—within existing resource constraints—as the study calls for airpower thinkers to reconsider contemporary notions of Air C2.