Key Points and Summary – U.S. Special Operations Command is cutting its Armed Overwatch plan from 75 to 62 OA-1K Sky Wardens after GAO questioned fleet justification and as Pentagon budgets tilt toward pacing threats in China and Russia.
-The rugged, modular OA-1K—meant to provide ISR, close air support, and precision strike from austere strips—was to replace U-28 and MC-12 fleets.
-Purchases now drop to 12 in 2025, six in 2026, and 11 in 2027. AFSOC leaders warn demand for air commandos remains near max, risking coverage gaps for small, far-forward SOF teams.
-Backers argue the mission endures; critics note limited funds and shifting priorities.
SOCOM Cuts Size Of Armed Overwatch Program
The US Special Operations Command (SOCOM) has made cuts to its Armed Overwatch program, reducing the planned purchase of OA-1K Skyraider aircraft from 75 to 62, due to concerns from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) that SOCOM had not adequately justified the need for that many aircraft.
These cuts, beginning in 2025, were also influenced by a shift in Pentagon budget priorities towards high-end conflicts with a focus on China and Russia, rather than counterterrorism in permissive airspace.
What Is SOCOM’s Armed Overwatch Program?
While the War Department has shifted its focus to large conventional warfare with near-peer opponents, China and Russia, from counterterrorism and counter-insurgency operations over the past two decades, SOCOM recognized that US Special Operations Forces will continue to operate in austere environments.
The demand for Special Operations Forces (SOF) isn’t going anywhere; although the high-profile missions covered in the media for 20+ years have diminished, they haven’t gone away. Especially in the realm of Special Forces programs working by, with, and through our allies and partners in Third World hotspots that don’t garner the attention that the kinetic missions of the 2000s and 2010s did.
These small, far-flung units, often are the only US forces in the region, operate alone and without the support needed to accomplish US national policy objectives.
The Air Force’s Special Operations Command (AFSOC), which operates the Skywarden, has fought for the assets.
“Since 2019, demand for your Air Commandos has surged, in some cases even exceeding the peak levels seen during the Global War on Terror,” AFSOC commander Lt. Gen. Michael Conley told the House Armed Services Committee in February.
“We commit almost 100 percent of our forces in each deployment cycle. There’s no excess left. In order to do other things, it means trade-offs for what we’re currently tasked to do.”
The lack of assets needed can and will lead to catastrophic events, such as the Niger ambush in 2017, where five US Special Forces soldiers and five host-nation troops were killed in an ambush by al-Qaeda aligned terrorists. SOCOM saw the lack and fought for the Armed Overwatch Program.
SOCOM’s Armed Overwatch program utilizes the OA-1K Sky Warden, a fixed-wing aircraft based on the Air Tractor AT-802U Sky Warden, to provide close air support (CAS), precision strike, and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) missions for US Special Operations Forces (SOF) in austere environments.
The program aims to replace older ISR platforms like the U-28 Draco and is designed to offer modular, cost-effective support. Still, it isn’t the sexy aircraft like the F-35 and upcoming F-47, so the reception has been…lukewarm.
My former ODA Commander, Colonel (ret) Stu Bradin of the Global SOF Foundation, fought for the Armed Overwatch Program under the foundation’s Imperatives for years.
Meet The OA-1K Sky Warden
The OA-1K is a modular, open-system platform based on a commercial-off-the-shelf airframe, allowing for quick adaptation to different mission needs. The modular construction allows for the swapping of various sensors, communications equipment, and combat payloads depending on the mission profile.
The Skyraider II derives its name from the Douglas A-1 Skyraider, which served during the Korean War and Vietnam War.
It is built in two stages: the airframe by Air Tractor and the armor and weapon systems by L3Harris Technologies.
The Sky Warden’s rugged design allows it to operate from unprepared airfields, and its long loiter time provides persistent support for ground forces.
Why Are The Cuts Coming?
Simply put, budget cuts in some areas will be used to prioritize expenditures in other areas.
The US Armed Overwatch Sky Warden, designed for ISR and ground strike missions, is a platform that faces significant budget cuts. Initially planned for 75 aircraft, SOCOM will now purchase fewer Sky Wardens, reducing the program’s budget by $300 million, cutting the number from 75 to 62.
“OA-1K aircraft procurement has been reduced due to resource constraints,” US Special Operations Command spokesperson Lt. Cmdr. Kassie Collins told Air & Space Forces Magazine.
A 2024 GAO report recommended that SOCOM slow down the acquisition process and better justify its fleet size.
Despite the reduction to 62 aircraft, SOCOM has still not fully justified its need for the planes or demonstrated how they will replace the capabilities of retiring U-28 Draco and MC-12W Liberty aircraft, according to the GAO.
Shifting The Focus Toward China
The Pentagon is pivoting its budget to prepare for a high-end conflict, which has led to a reduced focus on unconventional warfare efforts in permissive and semi-permissive airspaces that the Armed Overwatch program was designed to support.
The initial plan to purchase 75 OA-1K Skyraider (AT-802U Sky Warden) aircraft has been cut by 17 percent, reducing the target to 62 airframes.
The cuts are being implemented over several years:
2025: The planned purchase was reduced from 15 to 12 aircraft.
2026: The planned buy was cut to six aircraft from a previous target of 17.
2027: The acquisition of the aircraft was trimmed to 11 aircraft from 15.
Is the Armed Overwatch Program needed? Absolutely, and the preparation for a conflict with China will not alter that need. But there is only so much money to go around, and the Skyward isn’t a shiny new hood ornament that will catch the eye.
About the Author: Steve Balestrieri
Steve Balestrieri is a National Security Columnist. He served as a US Army Special Forces NCO and Warrant Officer. In addition to writing on defense, he covers the NFL for PatsFans.com and is a member of the Pro Football Writers of America (PFWA). His work was regularly featured in many military publications.
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Jim
September 17, 2025 at 2:00 pm
This aircraft reminds me of the Brazilian A-29 which is also a light prop driven plane designed for roughly the same missions as the Skyraider.
An additional role for the Skyraider could be as a border patrol and short penetration platform along the U. S. Southern Border.
(While there was anticipation the U. S. Military would participate in operations against the narco-terrorist drug lords along the U. S. Border and farther within Mexico, itself, that seems to be on the back burner for now, in spite of increased rhetoric from the administration and the recent destroying of alleged drug boats off the Venezuela coast, actual military missions into Mexico to neutralize drug lords… seems hard to imagine at this point.)
What’s appearing on the horizon, peer to peer conflict or low intensity missions in support of smaller special forces tactical operations far from established logistical bases of support?
These planes are already being manufactured, it’s a question of how many over what period of time… I’d hate to see this aircraft “die on the vine” from lack of support from the Brass and Congress.
I’ll admit I have a soft spot for prop driven, close air support platforms like the Skyraider, not to mention bare-boned Jeeps with a mounted machine gun on the back (too many episodes of Rat Patrol, I guess) running across the sand, making hit-and-run attacks upon hapless Germans left bewildered and shaking their fists amid the dust after a raid.
If you are way out there isolated on a mission with limited numbers of soldiers, seeing a friendly plane in the sky and directing it to successfully take on opposing forces, has got to put some cheer in an otherwise dangerous and potentially grim situation.
If that plane helps soldiers come back alive… it’s a great deal in my book. In Vietnam, that helicopter, whether a Huey or a Jolly Green Giant, coming into your field of vision was a welcome sight, indeed.