Air University (AU) > AUPress

March 1, 2017
Jungle Skippers: The 317th Troop Carrier Group in the Southwest Pacific and Their Legacy

This study examines the 317th Troop Carrier Group’s experience in the southwest Pacific during World War II to identify its long-term effects. The work focuses on the 317th's role in two specific events, the Battle of Wau in January 1943, and the airborne assault at Nadzab the following
Oct. 1, 2016
Sovereignty and Collaboration

In terms of military procurement, sovereignty is the ability to develop and operate equipment free from the external constraints of other nations. This paper questions whether sovereignty is an outdated strategy during times of austerity and if its apparent
Sept. 1, 2016
Airpower Lessons for an Air Force Cyber-Power Targeting Theory [ONLINE ONLY]

Cyber targeting and associated doctrine should be the center of Air Force cyber strategy and its plans to organize, train, and equip a force for full-spectrum cyberspace operations. Understanding what targets cyber operations can affect is critical to deliberate planning or crisis planning. This
Jan. 1, 2016
Instantly Basing Locust Swarms

This study finds that future swarms of small, remotely piloted aircraft (RPA) might provide significant force-projection capabilities using global military and commercial logistics infrastructures. This conclusion results from an examination of air operations during the Vietnam War, Operations
March 1, 2015
Blunting the Spear [ONLINE ONLY]

Analysis of Air Force rated officer retention data, interviews with squadron commanders, and surveys of pilots from the fighter, bomber, and remotely piloted aircraft communities highlight the need for more focused retention methods. The surveyed communities reported different contextual definitions
Jan. 1, 2015
Risky Business

This study examines the role of moral hazard in airlift operations. The author turns to the world of economics and insurance to define moral hazard and then examines two historical case studies through this lens. By conducting a comparative case study of the airlift-dependent operations at Dien Bien
April 1, 2014
Slim Chance

This study applies lessons learned from air mobility’s pivotal role in Field Marshal Sir William Slim’s World War II Burma campaign to contemporary air mobility operations. Based on this analysis, the author suggests that modern air mobility practitioners must account for five key
Aug. 1, 2013
Culture Wars

This work studies American civil-military relations at the level of an individual military service and considers the impact of the Air Force’s organizational culture on its civil-military relationship. Whereas most of the literature on civil-military relations treats the military as a unitary
Oct. 1, 2009
Air Superiority at Red Flag

Originally written as a master’s thesis, Lieutenant Colonel Locke’s Air Superiority at Red Flag relies on data compiled from 299 Red Flag missions to illuminate the role of air superiority. His provocative and well-written study shows a distinct correlation between attrition rates and
April 1, 2008
Ideas in Arms

The purpose of this paper is to determine whether or not America’s kinetic emphasis represents an effective method to achieve the stated political objectives of the global war on terror. The author addresses four questions: What constitutes an effective military strategy? Does America exhibit