Airpower and the Pivot

At the Diplomat, I talk a bit about the flexibility of airpower in context of the Pacific Pivot:

More broadly, the extent of the campaign indicates that what airpower theorists like to call the “inherent flexibility of airpower” cannot resolve the major resource issues associated with the pivot (or, if you prefer, the rebalance). Implicit in the rebalance is the idea that the United States can still use airpower, and long range naval strike, to solve security problems around the world, even as it focuses the bulk of its efforts on managing China.  If fighting a group as small as ISIS requires a long-term commitment of U.S. power, with attendant demands on allies and infrastructure, then the logic underpinning the pivot begins to unravel.  This is especially the case if the United States cannot escape the political pressures that continue to draw it into Europe and the Middle East.