A strong Air Force is key to our joint war fighting capability.

The last administration made severe cuts to the Defense budget, which Congress did far too little to oppose.

The President has promised to build a military that far outpaces our rivals.

The situation is far from ideal. There is a potential, though, for a full-year continuing resolution for all of fiscal year 2017.

Whatever the number is, and I'm pleased to get it to us broken down along those dimensions, would you agree with my first statement that the upshot number is not good for the health of the Air Force and for the security of our nation?

Lieutenant General Bunch, given the operational demand for these platforms and the cost of keeping the legacy airframes flying, assuming Congress provides the resources, can you assure me the Air Force will make a decision and move this…

Lieutenant General Bunch, could the Air Force accelerate the program once the winning bid is determined?

The committee last year increased the cap for bonuses from $25,000 to $35,000. Do you anticipate a request that you'll be increasing the cap further?

Given the changing face of war in the future... what differences would you expect to see in ground combat leaders of the future?

I commend Chairman Cotton, Senator King, and the rest of the Airland Subcommittee for beginning this conversation.

We can no longer afford this misalignment--not only is it costly, but it also poses undue risk.