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U.S. Air Force
New-Build F-16s For The USAF Is An Idea That Won’t Go Away, For Good Reason
Lockheed’s F-16G pitch could be part of the answer to the Air Force's problem of trying to grow its increasingly geriatric fighter fleet.
Latest News
USMC Used Its Expeditionary Operations Playbook In Combat For First Time During Epic Fury
The USMC set up remote forward refueling and rearming points for F-35Bs and other aircraft, as well as sensing locations during the war with Iran.
F-35 Sale To Saudi Arabia Approved By State Department
The proposed $24 billion stealth fighter deal has major ramifications across the Middle East.
Pentagon Cuts New AIM-260 Air-To-Air Missile Production Deal, Testing Accelerating
The AIM-260 was originally slated to enter service years ago and it is seen as critical to counter China’s PL-15 air-to-air missile.
How The Air Force Patched Up A Shrapnel-Damaged KC-135
In addition, pushing advanced repair work closer to the front lines was critical in keeping as many airframes supporting the mission as possible.
Cessna Cuts Cockpit Out Of SkyCourier Cargo Hauler For Uncrewed Logistics
As China moves at warp speed on uncrewed aerial logistics, Textron is offering a similar solution to the Pentagon with SkyCourier UX.
Apache Crew Rescue Highlights Need For AI In Combat Says Joint Chiefs Chairman
AI enabled troops to manage networks of unmanned systems across thousands of miles of water and to pull assets together for a quick rescue.
USAF Assessing Feasibility Of Restarting C-17 Production As Part Of Its Future Airlift Vision
The USAF is about to kick off a larger review of next-generation airlift options, and is still refining requirements for new tankers.
How The USAF Is Preparing For European Allies To Join The Collaborative Combat Aircraft Club
Allied interest in Collaborative Combat Aircraft is growing as USAFE works to ensure interoperability across a wide mix of future systems.
Lockheed Flexes To Modular AGM-158 JASSM Missile Concept
FLEX aims to give the JASSM missile family modular weapons architecture spanning longer-range, anti-ship, and new launch configurations.
One Of These Missiles Is Set To Be The Army’s Next Mid-Tier Anti-Air Interceptor
The new Enduring Shield system paired with AIM-9X Sidewinders already gives the Army its first mid-range air defense capability in decades.
Army Now Testing Anthem Long-Range Strike Weapon Built for Mass Production
Serial production of the relatively crude but cheap weapon is slated to begin in Texas next year, with plans to also build the weapon in Germany and Israel.
Houthis Claim Saudi F-15 Kill Over Yemen
The incident is another reminder that the Houthis’ patchwork of air defenses remains a credible and deadly threat.
Israel Is Bringing SPICE 1000 Standoff Weapon To The F-35
The standoff weapon could eventually give other F-35 operators a new path to a long-range precision strike capability.
Industrial Base Concerns Over Building F/A-XX And F-47 Remain: Top Pentagon Procurement Officer
Gen. Dale White says while the F-47 will fly by 2028, doing F/A-XX at the same time is concerning, but that’s not unique to just next gen fighters.
First-Ever Kill Of A Drone Boat By Another Drone Boat Claimed By Ukraine
The machine gun attack of one drone boat on another is the latest milestone in uncrewed surface vessel warfare.
Navy Destroyer Packs New ‘Piggy-Backed’ Point Defense System That Combines 30mm And .50 Cal Guns
The Mk 38 Mod 4 offers a major capability boost, especially against drones, and is now installed on at least one destroyer.
Where Are The Aircraft Carriers?: September 9, 2026
The Navy is applying lessons learned from recent marathon carrier cruises to the USS Theodore Roosevelt, which conducted an unreported maintenance availability ahead of deployment.
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NATO Air Commander Details Thinking Behind The Alliance’s New Air Defense Plan
With alarming incursions into NATO territory by Russian drones and missiles, and the possibility that worse is on the horizon, NATO is adapting its air defense playbook.
Air Force Announces New Plans To Take Over Defending Its Own Bases From Aerial Attack
The Air Force’s top officer acknowledged that a lack of organic base defense was a factor in the destruction caused by Iran.
Anduril’s YFQ-44A Fury CCA Has Flown Alongside F-35s
The YFQ-44 Fury has already taken to the skies alongside fifth-gen fighters as the company works toward a true crewed-uncrewed teaming demonstration.
Airmen Under Fire: Stories From Iranian Barrages On U.S. Bases
Air Force Chief Of Staff Gen. Wilsbach offered vignettes of airmen performing under punishing Iranian attacks.
Cheaper Reaper? Swarm Aero Unveils Gamera
Swarm Aero’s Gamera is designed to be inexpensive but pack major range and the ability to be adapted to many missions beyond standoff strike.
Fleet Of At Least 500 Collaborative Combat Aircraft By 2032 Now In USAF’s Plans
500 CCAs is a step up from recently stated USAF plans, and the service also now wants 500 more new drones to succeed its MQ-9s.
U.S. Nuclear Control Mission Could Dramatically Evolve Under Looking Glass-Next
Branded Content: Modernizing command, control, and communications network is critical for the future nuclear era.
Everything We Just Learned About The Vectis Collaborative Combat Aircraft From The Skunk Works
We have new details on Lockheed’s tailless CCA, including about its exotic “submerged” air inlet and how its design puts a premium on survivability.
The Outlook Is Getting Grimmer By The Day For Oil Exports From The Red Sea
Iraqi militias strike a pipeline that’s the remaining lifeline to Middle East oil and the Houthis move into a better position to control the Bab al-Mandab Strait than ever.
Bunker Talk: Let’s Talk About All The Things We Did And Didn’t Cover This Week
Has it really been 25 years since that terrible morning?
Adversaries Using Claude AI To Target Americans And Develop Missiles Is A Sign Of What’s To Come
A new report from Anthropic presents a stark picture of how malign actors are using commercially available U.S. AI services despite safeguards.
France Accelerates Rafale F5 Upgrade After Collapse Of FCAS Next-Gen Fighter Project
France is investing in a new Rafale configuration, along with drone wingmen, that aim to carry French tactical aviation deep into the 2030s.
Work At Underground Test Site A New Indicator Of Possible Strikes On Iran’s Pickaxe Mountain Bunker
Pickaxe Mountain presents immense targeting challenges and that’s where a key test range in New Mexico comes in to play, just as it did for Midnight Hammer.
Houthis’ Stranglehold On Strategic Bab Al-Mandab Strait Grows Stronger
The capture of the port of Mokha and possibly the islands of Perim and Zuqar can give the Houthis key points of control over the Red Sea and the Strait.
Operational F-15EXs Drop Live Bombs For The First Time
The first unit to get the F-15EX is already moving away from its exclusive air-to-air mission roots.
Ukraine Carried Out Its Deepest Drone Strike On Russia Ever
The strike hit an energy processing plant 1,700 miles from the Ukrainian border in Russia’s gas-rich Arctic region.
TWZ — previously known as The War Zone — has become an essential resource for the defense industry, the national security community, and the interested public at large since it was launched in 2016.
From its early beginnings to the present day, TWZ’s purpose remains the same.
The site stands at the nexus of military technology, strategy, and foreign policy. As a full-spectrum defense news and analysis website, TWZ covers the air, sea, land, space, and cyber domains of warfare, with an infusion of geopolitical context and technological analysis to offer readers deeper, yet easy-to-consume, insights than what they will find anywhere else….
