The U.S. Air Force is pursuing a strategic competition for new jet engine suppliers after its own Request for Information (RFI) declared that the existing industrial base has shown "significant challenges, including production delays, quality control issues and critical obsolescence" across key engine components. The RFI targets engines for the F-15EX and F-16 and envisions more than 180 engines per year by 2034. Contractors must now address raw-material constraints — such as with specialized titanium and nickel alloys — and identify manufacturing process bottlenecks that pose risk to scaling fighter jet production. The Air Force also expects respondents to specify the minimum volume at which their supply chains can justify capital investments and how those investments could lower unit costs.