CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK FOR AIRPOWER TO COUNTER NON-TRADITIONAL SECURITY THREATS

Abstract

The early theorists had conceived airpower to break the adversary's will and achieve decisive impact; however, technological deficiencies and weak strategies prevented airpower from doing so. Later, especially in the second half of the 20th century, advancements in technology and the advent of new concepts developed airpower as a military tool of the first choice to achieve strategic advantages. Traditionally, states remained the referent objects and a prime focus for national security, but post-cold war developments witnessed the emergence of a non-traditional security paradigm, increasingly making individuals referent objects of security. This security dimension primarily affected individuals and ideational aspects and led to the developing of a new identity-based construct with increasing political, economic, military, environmental, and societal influences. This paper highlights that despite the remarkable advancements in airpower technology and its ever-increasing role as a critical military instrument, its effectiveness in dealing with security threats and achieving a decisive victory in situations complexed by non-traditional threats remains ambiguous. Considering terrorism as a social construction allows investigation into unthinkable policies to counter it. Nevertheless, the main objective of the policy perhaps can be the deconstruction of the undesirable construct whereby airpower, enabled with modern technology, can act as a leading military component.

Bibliography Entry

Bhatti, Amjad Mahmood. 2022. "Conceptual Framework for Airpower to Counter Non-traditional Security Threats." Margalla Papers 26 (1): 47-60.