The U.S. Air Force just demonstrated that American pilots can fight and win without radios—a critical capability as China’s missile arsenal threatens to silence command centers in future wars.
Quick Take
- Exercise Mosaic Tiger 26-1 proved pilots can execute combat operations for 72 hours using pre-planned directives when communications fail
- China’s expanding missile capabilities drove the Air Force to develop the Agile Combat Employment strategy, shifting from centralized command to distributed operations
- Maintenance crews and support personnel demonstrated cross-functional capability to sustain air operations from austere airstrips under degraded conditions
- The exercise reveals a critical vulnerability: military services lack standardized autonomy frameworks, creating coordination risks in joint operations
Air Force Validates Combat Operations Without Communications
The 23rd Wing from Moody Air Force Base in Georgia conducted Exercise Mosaic Tiger 26-1 to test whether pilots and airmen could sustain combat operations when reliable communications with commanders become unavailable. The exercise included A-10C Thunderbolt II attack aircraft and HC-130J Combat King II recovery aircraft, reflecting the multi-platform nature of modern air operations. Squadron commanders, maintenance crews, base defense personnel, and support staff participated in the comprehensive 72-hour communication degradation scenario, validating that operational units can execute missions independently when traditional command-and-control infrastructure fails.
The US Air Force just war-gamed how pilots would fight if they lost communications in a high-intensity future war https://t.co/KWt7rBuyOj
— Jazz Drummer (@jazzdrummer420) November 26, 2025
China’s Missile Threat Drives Strategic Shift
China’s expanding missile capabilities represent the primary driver of the Air Force’s strategic pivot toward distributed operations. These systems can target centralized U.S. air bases and disrupt traditional command-and-control networks. Recent military conflicts in Russia, the Middle East, and Ukraine demonstrated that air bases remain vulnerable to drone strikes, missile attacks, and hybrid systems deployed by state and non-state actors. This real-world evidence accelerated the Air Force’s adoption of the Agile Combat Employment philosophy, which emphasizes dispersed operations from austere locations rather than reliance on centralized bases.
The 72-Hour Planning Doctrine
Lt. Col. Nathan Frey, Director of Operations for the 74th Fighter Squadron, emphasized the operational significance of the Air Tasking Order as a 72-hour planning document: “With the published Air Tasking Order for 72 hours out, I have the ability to fall back and execute those operations for the next three days.” For communication outages extending beyond 72 hours, Lt. Col. David Pool, Commander of the 74th Fighter Generation Squadron, explained the transition to broader military-type orders that provide strategic intent rather than specific directives. This tiered approach enables pilots and airmen to operate effectively even when communications remain severed for extended periods.
Cross-Training Transforms Operational Capability
Every airman in the exercise tackled tasks that normally fall outside their wheelhouse, according to Lt. Col. Justin May, Commander of the 23rd Combat Air Base. Maintenance personnel managed limited resources while sustaining aircraft operational status in austere conditions. This cross-functional capability demonstrates that the Air Force has moved beyond traditional role specialization toward a more flexible force structure capable of adapting to degraded operational environments. The emphasis on multi-capable personnel represents a significant departure from Cold War-era force design, reflecting the reality that future conflicts may require personnel to perform duties far removed from their primary specialization.
A Critical Vulnerability Remains Unresolved
Despite Exercise Mosaic Tiger 26-1’s validation of single-service communication-degraded operations, a critical vulnerability persists: military services lack standardized autonomy frameworks. Analysis from defense experts emphasizes that without shared standards, military services risk operational incoherence during future conflicts. Individual services pursuing separate autonomy approaches creates coordination risks equivalent to “radios that cannot transmit across combat fields.” This means that while the Air Force can now sustain independent operations, joint operations involving the Army, Navy, and Space Force remain vulnerable to coordination failures.
During SPARTAN SHIELD 25-2, Air Force, @USArmy & @USMC crews ran a full simulated air defense scenario, testing how quickly joint forces can detect, track & counter inbound threats.https://t.co/COV9wtMV8J pic.twitter.com/zTf0zV0MTh
— U.S. Air Force (@usairforce) November 21, 2025
Sources:
Air Force War Game Tests Pilots’ Adaptability Without Communications in Future Conflicts
Without a Standard for Autonomy, the U.S. Military Will Get Lost in the Fog of War
New Airpower Advantage: U.S. Air Force
Air Force Wargaming Institute Hosts Air Force Power Wargame 2025
