Today during a House Armed Services Committee (HASC) hearing entitled, “The Military Posture and Security Challenges in the Indo-Asia-Pacific Region,” Representative Austin Scott (GA-08) questioned Admiral Harry Harris Jr., Commander of U.S. Pacific Command, on the continued need for Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) capabilities, in particular the E-8C Joint Surveillance Target Attack Radar System (JSTARS), in addition to investment in future capabilities in space and other areas.

Earlier this week, the United States Air Force (USAF) released its proposed Fiscal Year 2019 (FY2019) budget, which did not include funding for the recapitalization of the aging JSTARS fleet. For FY2018, Rep. Scott was able to secure $417 million for the JSTARS recapitalization program and $36.9 million for the current legacy fleet of 16 E-8C to make critical equipment upgrades to maintain viability until the current fleet is replaced by the recapitalization program beginning in the mid-2020s. Rep. Scott has pressed back against the USAF’s decision to not continue to fund the JSTARS recapitalization for the lack of similar alternative ISR and integrated battle management capabilities to complete the critical missions JSTARS carries out today.

During today’s hearing, Admiral Harris echoed Rep. Scott’s push that the Department of Defense need continue to ensure operational capability of ISR and battle management fleet while also making future investments in space-based capabilities.

Click here to watch Rep. Scott and Admiral Harris’s exchange.

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