U.S. Air Force(Page 3)

Latest in U.S. Air Force

The U.S. Air Force is firmly of the view that its new F-47 6th generation stealth fighters are key to "how we win" in future fights, according to the service's top general in charge of force structure planning.
U.S. Air Force

F-47 6th Generation Fighter Future Force Size Questions Emerge

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Apr 24, 2025

Northrop Grumman has blamed higher manufacturing costs for its B-21 Raider stealth bomber for a 49 percent drop in first-quarter profit. This is not the first financial hit for the B-21, with the manufacturer having disclosed a loss of nearly $1.2 billion on the program early last year. The latest news comes as U.S. Air Force officials state a need for 145 of the stealth bombers to cope with increasing threats to U.S. security.
U.S. Air Force

Rising B-21 Raider Stealth Bomber Costs Hit Northrop Grumman

By Thomas Newdick

Posted on Apr 22, 2025

A U.S. Air Force B1-Lancer assigned to the 34th Expeditionary Bomb Squadron sits on a runway during post-flight maintenance in support of Pacific Air Forces’ Bomber Task Force mission at Misawa Air Base, Feb. 20, 2025. Through combined training, the U.S. and intercontinental defense forces work together to promote interoperability, thus furthering our investments and strengthening our relationships.
U.S. Air Force

B-1B Bones Make Unprecedented Bomber Task Force Deployment To Japan

By Thomas Newdick

Posted on Apr 17, 2025

U.S. Air Force B-2 stealth bombers have not dropped any GBU-57/B Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP) bunker buster bombs on Yemen's Houthis since the Trump administration launched a renewed aerial campaign against them, two U.S. officials have told TWZ.
U.S. Air Force

B-2s Have Not Dropped Massive Ordnance Penetrators On Yemen During Diego Garcia Missions: Officials

By Joseph Trevithick, Howard Altman

Updated on Apr 17, 2025

The U.S. Navy is touting the U.S.-Australian MQ-28 Ghost Bat ‘loyal wingman’ type drone program as a model for future industrial partnerships, while confirming continued U.S. military interest in the drone. The fact that the Navy is now speaking about this is notable, on the one hand because the MQ-28 has so far been seen primarily as a program of interest for the U.S. Air Force, and on the other because the Navy is currently still trying to nail down its carrier-based Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) plans.
U.S. Air Force

MQ-28 Ghost Bat Is Of “Strong Interest” To The U.S. Navy

By Thomas Newdick

Updated on Apr 15, 2025

KC-10 for sale
U.S. Air Force

KC-10 Extender Tankers Are Up For Auction

By Thomas Newdick

Posted on Apr 11, 2025

When the U.S. wanted to shift a Patriot battery from the Pacific to the Middle East, it took 73 C-17 flights to do so, highlighting sustainment concerns.
U.S. Air Force

It Took 73 C-17 Loads To Move Patriot Battalion From Pacific To Middle East

By Howard Altman

Posted on Apr 10, 2025

The Black Arrow, also known as the Small Cruise Missile, has completed a guided flight test, from an AC-130J Ghostrider gunships, the weapon’s manufacturer Leidos has confirmed. The Black Arrow — which is intended to carry a range of different payloads, and not just a kinetic warhead — arrives at a time when the Pentagon is looking at harnessing the potential of lower-cost weapons that can be readily produced at scale to meet the likely demands of future conflicts.
U.S. Air Force

AC-130J Ghostrider Gunship Launches Black Arrow Small Cruise Missile In New Video

By Thomas Newdick

Posted on Apr 5, 2025

Very Close Encounter Between F-35 And Su-35 Caught On Cockpit Camera
U.S. Air Force

Very Close Encounter Between F-35 And Su-35 Caught On Cockpit Camera

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Apr 4, 2025

B-2 Spirits in Diego garcia.
U.S. Air Force

B-2 Stealth Bombers Deployed To Diego Garcia Have Been Striking Targets In Yemen

By Howard Altman, Tyler Rogoway

Updated on Apr 4, 2025

The first OA-1K light attack aircraft — recently officially named as the Skyraider II — has been delivered to Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC). While the command welcomed the militarized derivative of the popular Air Tractor AT-802 crop duster, there remain serious questions about how the Air Force will actually make use of the OA-1K, as the service increasingly prepares for future high-end contingencies.
U.S. Air Force

First OA-1K Skyraider II Handed Over To Air Force Special Operations Command

By Thomas Newdick

Posted on Apr 3, 2025

There are signs that a new AIM-120E variant of the Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile (AMRAAM) may now be in development.
U.S. Air Force

New AIM-120E Variant Of AMRAAM Air-To-Air Missile Hinted At By USAF

By Joseph Trevithick

Updated on Apr 1, 2025

The U.S. Air Force’s F-47 sixth-generation stealth fighter may just be “Increment 1” of a family of Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) combat jet designs. This is the opinion of former Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition, Technology & Logistics Andrew Hunter. It echoes something that was previously hinted at, namely the possibility that the Air Force might consider fielding two distinct versions of the NGAD fighter component.
U.S. Air Force

F-47 Fighter Program Could See Multiple Versions Built In Increments

By Thomas Newdick

Posted on Apr 1, 2025

The U.S. Air Force has used B-2 Spirit stealth bombers against Houthi rebels in Yemen.
U.S. Air Force

B-2 Spirits Amassed On Diego Garcia Underscore Hardened Aircraft Shelter Debate

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Apr 1, 2025

C-32 in Greenville without its paint.
U.S. Air Force

C-32A ‘Air Force 2’ Jet Like You’ve Never Seen One Before

By Tyler Rogoway

Updated on Mar 31, 2025

Significant parts of the veil of secrecy over the origins of Boeing's F-47 sixth-generation stealth fighter, and the decisions and tradeoffs made along the way, have now been pulled back.
U.S. Air Force

Major F-47 Revelations Were Just Dropped By Former Air Force Secretary

By Joseph Trevithick

Updated on Mar 28, 2025

X-36 was an early progenitor that lead to the F-47.
U.S. Air Force

Reflections Of The F-47: Looking Back At The X-36

By Thomas Newdick

Posted on Mar 27, 2025

The U.S. Air Force office responsible for the B-52 Radar Modernization Program (RMP) is asking for new information about options for derivatives of off-the-shelf multi-mode radars that could go into the bombers.
U.S. Air Force

B-52 Radar Upgrade Alternatives Info Sought By Air Force

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Mar 26, 2025

A significant force of B-2 Spirit stealth bombers looks to be currently wending its way to the Indian Ocean island of Diego Garcia.
U.S. Air Force

Signs U.S. Massing B-2 Spirit Bombers In Diego Garcia (Updated)

By Joseph Trevithick, Howard Altman

Posted on Mar 25, 2025

The U.S. Air Force's selection of Boeing's F-47 as the winner of its Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) combat jet competition raises new questions about plans for new stealthy aerial refueling tankers.
U.S. Air Force

F-47 Fighter Reveal Draws New Attention To USAF Stealth Tanker Plans

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Mar 24, 2025

The puzzling canards on the F-47 could be an indicator of what the aircraft's design goals are.
U.S. Air Force

What The F-47’s Canards Say About The Rest Of Its Design

By Tyler Rogoway

Posted on Mar 24, 2025

F-47 X-plane demonstrators
U.S. Air Force

F-47 Was Born Out Of Secret X-Planes Built By Both Boeing And Lockheed

By Tyler Rogoway

Posted on Mar 23, 2025

F-47 NGAD from Boeing.
U.S. Air Force

Boeing Wins F-47 Next Generation Air Dominance Fighter Contract (Updated)

By Thomas Newdick, Tyler Rogoway

Updated on Mar 22, 2025

F-35 Hill AFB
U.S. Air Force

F-35s From Hill AFB Arrive In England

By Howard Altman

Updated on Mar 20, 2025

U.S. Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David Allvin has confirmed that U-2 Dragon Lady spy planes have been flying missions around the border with Mexico.
U.S. Air Force

U-2 Spy Planes Are Flying Border Security Missions Air Force Confirms

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Mar 14, 2025

F-15EX deliveries accelerating.
U.S. Air Force

F-15EX Production Heats Up

By Thomas Newdick

Posted on Mar 13, 2025

B-52 Re-Engining Plan Comes Into Sharper Focus
U.S. Air Force

B-52 Re-Engining Plan Comes Into Sharper Focus

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Mar 13, 2025

B-21 refueling requirements are pushing rethinking of tanker needs.
U.S. Air Force

B-21 Aerial Refueling Demands Further Point To It Being A Stealthy Flying Gas Can

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Mar 7, 2025

The U.S. Air Force's new Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) drones are being developed around fundamentally different understandings of maintenance, logistics, and sustainment, with a heavy focus on commercial-of-the-shelf components, than the service's existing crewed and uncrewed platforms.
U.S. Air Force

Collaborative Combat Drones Designed From Ground Up To Do Logistics Differently

By Joseph Trevithick

Updated on Mar 6, 2025

U.S. Air Force officials remain focused on the ability to disperse forces to far-flung operating locations as the primary means of reducing vulnerability to enemy attacks.
U.S. Air Force

USAF Generals Downplay Calls For More Hardened Aircraft Shelters In Pacific Theater

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Mar 5, 2025

A U.S. Air Force F-15E Strike Eagle conducts combat patrols over the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility Oct. 20, 2024. The F-15E is deployed within the USCENTCOM AOR to help defend U.S. interests, promote regional security, and deter aggression in the region.
U.S. Air Force

F-15’s New EPAWSS Electronic Warfare Suite Already Has Successor In Development

By Thomas Newdick

Posted on Mar 5, 2025

Lockheed Martin has revealed more about its Common Multi-Mission Truck (CMMT, pronounced ‘comet’), a revised design based on its Speed Racer air vehicle, a missile-shaped uncrewed system you can read more about here. The CMMT is now said to be a family of systems, intended to yield low-cost air vehicles designed for a wide range of missions.
U.S. Air Force

Lockheed’s Low-Cost Cruise Missile ‘Truck’ Is Now In Testing

By Thomas Newdick

Posted on Mar 5, 2025

General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI), has revealed that its jet-powered MQ-20 Avenger drone, equipped with U.S. government-provided autonomy software, took part in a recent Orange Flag test exercise. This is the latest milestone for the Avenger, which has been heavily involved in the testing of different artificial intelligence-driven autonomy systems for several years now.
U.S. Air Force

MQ-20 Avenger Tests ‘Hivemind’ AI In Orange Flag Exercise

By Thomas Newdick, Howard Altman

Posted on Mar 5, 2025

A deep review of the U.S. Air Force's paused plans to acquire a new crewed sixth-generation stealth combat jet came to the unambiguous conclusion that the service needs such an aircraft to be best positioned to achieve air superiority in future high-end fights.
U.S. Air Force

Next Generation Fighter Critical To Future Air Superiority, Key USAF Study Concluded

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Mar 5, 2025

A novel type of jet propulsion, a rotating detonation engine (RDE), has been successfully tested by Pratt & Whitney. The development is highly significant for the U.S. military, with RDE technology at the center of the project called Gambit, which aims to provide a propulsion system for a mass-producible, low-cost, high-supersonic, long-range weapon for air-to-ground strike.
U.S. Air Force

Rotating Detonation Engine For Future High-Performance Missiles Successfully Tested

By Thomas Newdick

Posted on Mar 4, 2025

The U.S. Air Force has designated the drones that General Atomics and Anduril are currently developing as part of the first phase, or Increment 1, of the Collaborative Combat Aircraft program as the YFQ-42A and YFQ-44A, respectively.
U.S. Air Force

‘Fighter Drone’ Designations Officially Assigned To Collaborative Combat Aircraft By USAF

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Mar 4, 2025

Lockheed Martin says it conducted six successful flight tests last year as part of work to add new capabilities on the F-22 Raptor stealth fighter.
U.S. Air Force

F-22 Raptors Completed Six Test Flights For New Sensor Upgrades

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Mar 3, 2025

The U.S. Air Force expects to continue utilizing QF-16 Full Scale Aerial Target (FSAT) drones converted from F-16 Vipers fighters through at least 2035 despite moving in recent years to wind the program down.
U.S. Air Force

QF-16 Zombie Vipers To Keep Flying And Dying Into The 2030s

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Mar 3, 2025

The Air Force will inspect all 89 of its KC-46A Pegasus aerial refueling jets after cracks were found on two set for delivery to the Military Delivery Center.
U.S. Air Force

Cracks In KC-46 Tankers Halt All Deliveries

By Howard Altman

Updated on Mar 1, 2025

An apparently new photo published by Boeing shows one of its F-15 Advanced Eagle series fighters fitted with what looks like a previously unseen infrared search and track (IRST) sensor ahead of the cockpit.
U.S. Air Force

F-15 Nose-Mounted Infrared Sensor Hinted At In New Boeing Photo

By Thomas Newdick

Updated on Feb 27, 2025

The U.S. Air Force has formally dubbed its forthcoming OA-1K light attack aircraft as the Skyraider II.
U.S. Air Force

OA-1K Light Attack Special Ops Aircraft Officially Named Skyraider II

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Feb 27, 2025

In this handout image provided by the U.S. Air Force, 492nd FS commander, prepare to taxi their F-15E Strike Eagle prior to their departure from RAF Lakenheath in preparation for Operation Odyssey Dawn missions March 19, 2011 in Lakenheath, United, Kingdom. Approximately 112 cruise missiles fired from U.S. and British ships and submarines targeting about 20 radar and anti-aircraft sites along Libya's Mediterranean coast.
U.S. Air Force

USAF Air Base In England Is Nuclear Capable Again: Watchdog Report

By Thomas Newdick

Posted on Feb 27, 2025

The U.S. Air Force's force design director says analyses to date show the service will face more operational risk and be less able to achieve assigned objectives without a new crewed sixth-generation combat jet.
U.S. Air Force

Axing Next Generation Fighter Would Leave Air Force Worse Off: Force Design Boss

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Feb 26, 2025

The U.S. Air Force has confirmed that a recently released rendering from the AIM-260A does indeed reflect the actual design of what is also known as the Joint Advanced Tactical Missile (JATM).
U.S. Air Force

This Is What The Classified AIM-260 Missile Actually Looks Like, Air Force Confirms

By Joseph Trevithick

Updated on Feb 26, 2025

B-52 escorted by F-35s and F/A-18s
U.S. Air Force

B-52 Flies Close To Border Of Russia And Belarus

By Thomas Newdick

Posted on Feb 24, 2025

The U.S. Air Force, in cooperation with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), is still exploring concepts for a reusable hypersonic air vehicle capable of performing strike and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) missions.
U.S. Air Force

New Hypersonic Strike-Recon Aircraft Effort Eyeing Prototype Development By 2030

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Feb 20, 2025

AF1 trump model
U.S. Air Force

Trump Mulls Options To Accelerate Delivery Of Air Force One Jets

By Thomas Newdick

Posted on Feb 20, 2025

A U.S. Air Force F-16 Fighting Falcon flies a presence patrol over the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility, Feb. 11, 2025. As a highly maneuverable and agile platform with a proven record in air-to-air combat and air-to-ground attack, the Fighting Falcon is well-equipped to engage with threats to regional security and deter further aggression in the AOR. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Jackson Manske)
U.S. Air Force

F-16s With Larger Laser-Guided Rocket Loads, Drone Kill Marking Emerge Over Middle East

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Feb 19, 2025

Satellite imagery shows the extent of the massive amount of work that has been done in the past year to restore more than 20 million square feet of runways and other World War II-era infrastructure at historic North Field on the U.S. island of Tinian in the Western Pacific.
U.S. Air Force

Massive WWII B-29 Bomber Base Fully Reclaimed For Future Pacific Fight

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Feb 19, 2025

A U.S. Air Force Convair B-36B-1-CF Peacemaker (s/n 44-92033) of the 7th Bombardment Wing in flight, in 1949. This aircraft was retired to the MASDC on 19 November 1956.
U.S. Air Force

America’s First Broken Arrow Incident Happened 75 Years Ago

By Thomas Newdick

Updated on Feb 14, 2025

U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth utilized a Silver Bullet Command and Control module on his first overseas trip.
U.S. Air Force

C-17’s ‘Silver Bullet’ Airstream Trailer Pod Used By Secretary Of Defense Hegseth On First Overseas Trip

By Howard Altman

Posted on Feb 12, 2025

Three nozzle binding mishaps on KC-46 Pegasus aerial refueling tankers have cost the AIr Force nearly $23 million
U.S. Air Force

Tankers Flood Airspace Off The California Coast For China-Focused Air Combat Exercise

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Feb 11, 2025

The F-15EX, the Air Force’s newest fighter aircraft, arrives to Eglin Air Force Base, Florida March 11. The aircraft will be the first Air Force aircraft to be tested and fielded from beginning to end through combined developmental and operational tests. The 40th Flight Test Squadron and the 85th Test and Evaluation Squadron personnel are responsible for testing the aircraft.
U.S. Air Force

F-15EX Nails Pentagon Test Campaign, Survivability Concerns Remain

By Thomas Newdick

Posted on Feb 6, 2025

The U.S. Air Force quietly fixed a problem with the integration of the 30,000-pound class GBU-57/B Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP) bomb onto the B-2 Spirit stealth bomber last year. As part of the integration work, the service also conducted an important test of a new "smart fuze" for the MOP to help improve the weapon's effectiveness, even when the exact depth and positioning of the buried target are not definitively known.
U.S. Air Force

Massive Ordnance Penetrator Bunker Buster Grows More Potent

By Joseph Trevithick

Updated on Feb 6, 2025

New information about serious and potentially dangerous deficiencies with the emergency ejection system on the U.S. Air Force's new T-7A Red Hawk jet trainer has been released.
U.S. Air Force

New Details About T-7A Red Hawk Jet Trainer Ejection System Woes Emerge

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Feb 5, 2025

Rivet joint flew off Mexico.
U.S. Air Force

RC-135 Rivet Joint Surveillance Jet Just Flew Unprecedented Mission Off Mexico

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Feb 4, 2025

APKWS infrared seeker in the works.
U.S. Air Force

Infrared Seeker For APKWS Guided Rockets Is In The Works

By Tyler Rogoway

Posted on Feb 4, 2025

A relatively low-cost cruise missile that the U.S. Air Force is now developing could transform into an air-launched counter-drone weapon.
U.S. Air Force

Cheap Cruise Missile Program Set To Evolve Into Air-To-Air Drone Interceptor

By Joseph Trevithick

Updated on Jan 31, 2025

U.S. Air Force F-16 Vipers have been using 70mm laser-guided rockets to down Houthi drones during operations in and around the Red Sea in the past year.
U.S. Air Force

F-16s Have Been Using Laser-Guided Rockets To Shoot Down Houthi Drones

By Joseph Trevithick, Howard Altman, Tyler Rogoway

Posted on Jan 29, 2025

F-35 Alaska
U.S. Air Force

F-35 Caught On Video Tumbling Vertically Into The Runway At Alaskan Air Base

By Tyler Rogoway

Posted on Jan 29, 2025

The first supersonic flight of the Boom Supersonic XB-1.
U.S. Air Force

Boom! The XB-1 Demonstrator Jet Has Gone Supersonic

By Thomas Newdick

Posted on Jan 28, 2025

The U.S. Air Force has dramatically plussed-up contracts with General Electric and Pratt & Whitney, both of which now have a ceiling of $3.5 billion, to continue work on prototype next-generation jet engines.
U.S. Air Force

Billions For Next Generation Fighter Jet Engines Greenlit By Air Force

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Jan 28, 2025

An Air Force C-32A VIP transport jet, on a special mission for President Donald Trump, had to delay its landing at Joint Base Andrews because F-16C Vipers were scrambled to intercept a drone.
U.S. Air Force

C-32 Forced To Delay Landing After F-16s Scrambled To Intercept Drone Near Capital

By Howard Altman

Posted on Jan 27, 2025

The U.S. Air Force's XQ-67A drone is set to receive modifications and upgrades to demonstrate its ability to perform certain missions as part of a program called Demon Ape.
U.S. Air Force

XQ-67 Getting Overhauled With New Capabilities As Part Of Demon Ape Program

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Jan 24, 2025