Future Concepts Directive Part 2: Future Air Operating Concept

The Future Air Operating Concept (FAOC) has been written as Part 2 of the Future Concepts Directive. The purpose of the FAOC is to guide force development (FD) over the next two decades within the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF), providing an aim point to inform those involved in the change agenda. The FAOC is not a detailed plan and should not be interpreted as such, but it does provide sound conclusions with respect to what air power capabilities will be required in the near future to ensure we can continue to deliver relevant, responsive and effective air power and to allow achievement of the vision of an agile and integrated air force with the reach and power essential to Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) operations. These conclusions, broad in nature given the scope of this capstone concept, will in time inform development of more detailed subordinate functional and enabling concepts. The FAOC’s annex provides an initial look at the emerging FD considerations that can be derived from the FAOC that I expect to be used to focus academic and scientific research, concept development, experimentation and wargaming activities.

M. J. Hood
Lieutenant-General
Commander RCAF