Aviation has played an important role in irregular warfare, from its use by the British against rebellious tribesmen in Iraq and Transjordan in the interwar period to the era of the unblinking eye and precision strike in Afghanistan. Our guests in this episode—retired US Air Force Lt. Gen. Thomas Trask and Dr. James Kiras—discuss this evolution in the use of airpower to support ground forces. As they explain, rapid technological advances have helped perfect the employment of airpower, and yet the role of aviation in war has not significantly changed to this point. However, that with the transition to more distributed operations across the globe, it will no longer be possible to provide the level of responsive support to which the US military has become accustomed.
Intro music: "Unsilenced" by Ketsa
Be sure to visit the Irregular Warfare Initiative's new website to see all of the new articles, podcast episodes, and other content the IWI...
What is the human domain of warfare, and will it be more or less relevant in great power competition? Who should own it? What...
What are unconventional warfare and foreign subversion? Will they be important in an era of great power competition? What are some of the second-...