Project AIR FORCE Research and Commentary

Research

Apr 14, 2026

What Knowledge and Skills Does the U.S. Air Force Need to Compete with China?

The U.S. Air Force faces a critical opportunity—and urgent necessity—to systematically cultivate, track, and integrate China-relevant expertise across its workforce. This includes language skills, cultural understanding, and regional knowledge.
Apr 10, 2026

RAND Research on Workforce and Force Development Innovation: Supporting the U.S. Space Force Transformation Toward the Objective Force

This document offers a roadmap of how RAND Project AIR FORCE’s Workforce, Development, and Health program can continue to support the U.S. Space Force in its transformation to a warfighting force purpose-built to contest and control space.
Research

Mar 31, 2026

Air Force Assignment Durations: Modeling Policy Changes and Their Effects on Cost, Readiness, and Retention

Permanent change of station moves drive significant U.S. Air Force costs and create disruption for individuals and units. RAND researchers modeled and analyzed policy options to extend assignment durations and optimize cost, readiness, and retention.
Research

Mar 31, 2026

A Selection of Implementable Actions to Establish an Air Force Workforce Analytics Center of Excellence

The authors supported the efforts of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Manpower, Personnel, and Resources (AF/A1) to strengthen the workforce analytics enterprise’s contributions into Headquarters Air Force decisionmaking processes.
Research

Mar 31, 2026

Modifying Air Force Intelligence Career Development in Response to Targeted Permanent Change of Station Reductions

In response to the U.S. Department of War's directive for military services to reduce permanent change of station moves, RAND authors examined the effects of such changes on career development pathways for U.S. Air Force intelligence service members.
Research

Mar 31, 2026

Considering U.S. Air Force Culture When Modifying Career Development Pathways for Longer Assignments

The U.S. Department of War directed the military services to reduce the number of permanent changes of station and modify career development pathways. The authors evaluated the relationship between U.S. Air Force assignments and career development.
Research

Mar 25, 2026

Achieving Combat Sortie Generation Proficiency in the Air Force: An Examination of Goals, Gaps, Barriers, and Solutions

The authors present their analysis of combat sortie generation proficiency as a step toward defining a comprehensive training program for the U.S. Air Force. The analysis covers threat demands, goals, existing gaps, and training needs.
Research

Mar 20, 2026

Civilian Workforce Challenges for the Department of the Air Force Air Operations: Development and Assessment of Alternative Civilian Personnel Systems

This report documents the development and assessment of potential alternative personnel system options designed to address recruiting and retention challenges for the U.S. Department of the Air Force civilian air operations workforce.
Mar 9, 2026

Analytic Capabilities to Support Logistics Analyses

This publication highlights eight analytic tools developed by RAND Project AIR FORCE that the U.S. Air Force can use to explore logistics challenges in requirements determination, storage and prepositioning, transportation, and logistics support.
Tool

Mar 4, 2026

Polling Rank: A Comparative Judgment Tool

This guide describes a RAND-developed comparative judgment software tool called Polling Rank, which takes a list of text items as an input and outputs a ranking of those items based on pairwise comparisons made by human participants.
Expert Insights

Feb 25, 2026

China's National Security Decisionmaking

Persistent misperceptions about China's worldview and motivations can lead the U.S. to adopt strategies and policies that are counterproductive to its goals. Deeper understanding of China's decisionmaking enables more-effective competition and greater stability in the U.S.-China relationship.
Research

Feb 13, 2026

Evaluating the Impact of Changes to the Air Force Officer and Enlisted Evaluation Systems

In 2023, the U.S. Air Force implemented several changes to the officer and enlisted performance evaluation systems. In this report, the authors document findings and recommendations from their analysis and evaluation of those changes.

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Research & Commentary

Featured

What Knowledge and Skills Does the U.S. Air Force Need to Compete with China?

What Knowledge and Skills Does the U.S. Air Force Need to Compete with China?

Modeling Assignment Duration for the Department of the Air Force

China's National Security Decisionmaking

The RAND Ontological Model for Assessing Nuclear Crisis Escalation Risk (ROMANCER)

All PAF Research & Commentary

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What Knowledge and Skills Does the U.S. Air Force Need to Compete with China?

RAND Research on Workforce and Force Development Innovation: Supporting the U.S. Space Force Transformation Toward the Objective Force

Air Force Assignment Durations: Modeling Policy Changes and Their Effects on Cost, Readiness, and Retention

A Selection of Implementable Actions to Establish an Air Force Workforce Analytics Center of Excellence

Modifying Air Force Intelligence Career Development in Response to Targeted Permanent Change of Station Reductions

Considering U.S. Air Force Culture When Modifying Career Development Pathways for Longer Assignments

Achieving Combat Sortie Generation Proficiency in the Air Force: An Examination of Goals, Gaps, Barriers, and Solutions

Civilian Workforce Challenges for the Department of the Air Force Air Operations: Development and Assessment of Alternative Civilian Personnel Systems

Analytic Capabilities to Support Logistics Analyses

Polling Rank: A Comparative Judgment Tool

China's National Security Decisionmaking

Evaluating the Impact of Changes to the Air Force Officer and Enlisted Evaluation Systems

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