The US Air Force's plan to give its biggest planes new missions has gotten China's attention

• US Air Force officials say they're pursuing a plan to drop "palletized effects" from cargo planes.
• The "effects" those planes drop could be long-range cruise missiles or other sensors and jammers.
• It's been noticed by China's military, which likely sees it as "a credible threat," one expert said.

The US Air Force is moving quickly to equip its cargo aircraft to drop long-range weapons, seeking to expand the number of aircraft that it can use to launch strikes.