Inside the Air Force highlights

Some must-reads from this week's issue of Inside the Air Force:

1. Defense analysts say the Air Force's reconsideration of what should follow the legacy E-8C Joint Surveillance Target Attack Radar System is driven by the strategy and budget concerns of a new slate of Pentagon leaders, who worry key command-and-control aircraft could be shot down by advanced foreign adversaries.

Full story: Analysts: New leaders with fresh strategy, budget ideas drive JSTARS debate

2. As the Air Force looks to speed up its acquisition process by expanding its use of certain authorities, the service's space community is working to identify some "exemplar" programs to pilot those concepts.

Full story: Air Force identifying initial programs to pilot rapid acquisition

3. The Air Force wants to leverage commercial industry's anticipated development of space internet satellite constellations to experiment with and establish a seamless communication and data-sharing capability.

Full story: USAF to launch MILSATCOM experiments using commercial space internet

4. The Air Force is restructuring how it manages remotely piloted aircraft forces to reflect the needs of an MQ-9 Reaper fleet that has nearly quadrupled in size and spread to support multiple geographic combatant commands over more than two decades.

Full story: Creech AFB stands up new ops center to manage RPA mission growth