The Importance of Airpower in Supporting Irregular Warfare in Afghanistan
This article examines the mission of NATO Air Training Command–Afghanistan and the Afghan air force, offering it as an example of how building this partner nation’s airpower capacity successfully supported strategic-level objectives defined by the government of Afghanistan and NATO. Furthermore, it shows how the Afghan government used this airpower to demonstrate its legitimacy as the ruling power against the Taliban insurgency. Additionally, the operations addressed here highlight the insurgents’ inability to provide significant benefits on par with those of the Afghan government to tangibly improve the livelihood, security, and well-being of the predominantly rural Afghan masses.