The National Interest (here) has an article calling for the production of more C-17s. The arguments put forward make sense. Additionally the C-17 has in essence replaced two aircraft. The C-5 and the old C-141. Its awesome. That can't be denied.
But America's military has a preoccupation with air power in all its forms to include logistics.
I blame the Navy for that. It suffers from that malady too.
For some reason our sea service refuses to look beyond its carriers and destroyers and subs. Everything else seems to fall by the wayside and that's a huge mistake.
Sealift has suffered and that is the real solution to all of our resupply efforts in all future theaters.
From the NI article.
Air Force C-17s are the linchpin of any major movement of troops and equipment. In the weeks leading up to Operation Absolute Resolve, the seizure of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro from Caracas, open-source data identified 83 C-17 flights arriving at Caribbean bases over a 16-day period. At least 160 transport aircraft were observed moving through Europe, the Mediterranean, and the Middle East in the 13 days before the Operation Midnight Hammer strikes of June 2025.
Impressive yes. Necessary? No. One sealift ship (I'm talking about the soon to be scrapped fast logistics ships) could accomplish the same cargo movement in the same time and with fewer (much) trips.
Take for example the ARC ship shown above. This is what it did in one lift.
The ARC Endurance, carrying 1st Combat Aviation Brigade, 1st Infantry Division equipment, helicopters, and vehicles, arrives at the Port of Dunkirk in on March 06, 2021 in support of Atlantic Resolve and Operation Mousquetaire in Dunkirk, France.
This is the seventh Atlantic Resolve aviation rotation and the second rotation for 1 ID CAB. The unit is bringing approximately 1,800 personnel, 50 UH-60 and HH-60 Black Hawks, 10 CH-47 Chinooks, 20 AH-64 Apaches and 1,800 wheeled vehicles and pieces of equipment.
This Atlantic Resolve rotation in conjunction with Operation Mousquetaire at the port of Dunkirk and the Calais Airport offers a unique opportunity for the US military and French allies. An operation of this scale is a truly historic event and offers the ability to demonstrate a shared bi-lateral ability to work side-by-side to receive U.S. Army equipment, stage it, and move it efficiently and safely.
Whole brigades being moved in one lift? Pretty damn awesome but this ability is being atrophied in the belief that it can be reconstituted from civilian sources in time of war.
I believe that is a huge mistake.
Additionally while everyone grabs at the time factor, in our American way of war we ALWAYS seem to telegraph our punch by takes weeks and sometimes months to get into place.
A war with China will be different but in that instance a logistics bridge of C-17s will not be able to mass enough beans, bullets and bandages to make a difference.
We need to bring back two things for a war with China.
Prepositioned ships (sorry logistics warehouses are too vulnerable even if you harden them to infinity) and fast sealift transports!
