via Breaking Defense...
To that end, he and his peeps at Heritage performed an open-source analysis of the abilities of each service to meet that standard. All but — quite surprisingly — the Air Force are ranked as “marginal,” which isn’t really marginal but means that the service “would exactly meet a two-MRC force size.” Here are the scores with his assessments:Read the whole thing here.
Marine Corps as “Marginal.” The Corps’ strongest suit was in readiness, but even here there are problems as stated by the Corps itself. While the fighting competency of the service is superb, it is hampered by old equipment, troubled replacement programs for its key ground vehicles, and a shrinking force. The progress it has made in replacing its rotary-wing aircraft is a notable bright spot in its modernization portfolio.
I want to emphasize..."hampered by old equipment, troubled replacement programs for its key ground vehicles"....
The AAV replacement issues are becoming mainstream. Upgrading (a bit) existing vehicles and buying new ones in the middle to end of the next decade is NOT the answer.
