Marine Corps unveils annual aviation plan

The Marine Corps recently unveiled its annual aviation plan, signed by Deputy Commandant for Aviation Lt. Gen. Steven Rudder.

The report lays out Rudder's eight priorities meant to keep the service in compliance with the National Defense Strategy.

"The naval aviation enterprise of which we are a part keeps the nation ready, in any clime and in any place, to address threats as they arise. To do that, ships at sea employ expeditionary, amphibious and carrier-based forces ready to execute missions as tasked," Rudder writes in the report.

The service's aviation priorities include air defense, lethality, long-range precision fires and creating stronger partnerships.

"Preparing for pacing threats, those presented by strategic competitors, means that we are also prepared for the lesser-included missions our MAGTFs -- Marine Expeditionary Forces, Brigades and Units -- might be called upon to execute," Rudder adds in his introduction.

The Marine Corps' other priorities listed in the plan include command and control within a degraded environment, improving affordability across the Defense Department, information warfare and protected mobility.

Rudder, who has served as the deputy commandant for aviation since July 2017, will testify Wednesday in front of the Senate Armed Services seapower subcommittee about naval aviation.