Evaluating Air Force Special Warfare for the Contested Fight: Kill Chain Advantages as a Stand In Force

The United States Air Force is undergoing sweeping re-optimization efforts to ensure the service’s capabilities and contributions to the Joint Force can prevail in an era of strategic competition. Critical to that end is the imperative to project power and complete kill chains—the process to target and engage targets—at scale while preserving a proactive, agile, and adaptive force that can press the fight under contested conditions. Peer adversaries, namely China and Russia, have developed counter-capabilities to specifically thwart US airpower and organic kill chain effectiveness of legacy weapon systems. Complex anti-access, area-denial (A2/AD) threat systems complicate the battlefield for even the most advanced airborne standoff platforms. These challenges have driven the Air Force to develop a future force that incorporates complimentary stand-in capabilities, not limited to airborne platforms, that can close kill chains and deliver airpower effects from within a threat-saturated environment. Air Force Special Warfare (AFSPECWAR) airmen, highly regarded for their record of success against violent extremist organizations, are increasingly discussed among the range of stand-in weapon systems the Air Force is considering. This paper seeks to evaluate AFSPECWAR’s ability to meaningfully contribute to the kill chain process and create airpower opportunities for the joint force in contested environments. A qualitative framework is used to examine AFSPECWAR’s viability in prosecuting kill chains as a stand-in capability. The approach takes a holistic look of AFSPECWAR’s competencies and contributions, rather than a narrow view of any one particular skillset. The assessment also includes a review of major exercises and events involving AFSPECWAR to identify notable advantages and shortfalls with the intent of stimulating further discussion in the US Air Force’s quest for an airpower competitive edge.