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F-16 Fighting Falcons from Kunsan Air Base and South Korean KF-16s taxi to the runway together during Exercise Buddy Wing 14-8 at Seosan Air Base, Republic of Korea Aug. 21, 2014. The purpose of the exercise was not only to improve interoperability between U.S. Air Force and ROKAF fighter squadrons, but to practice with ROKAF KF-16 units for their first upcoming RED FLAG exercise in Alaska.
F-16

South Korean F-16s Just Bombed A Town By Accident

Eight 500-pound Mk 82 bombs detonated in a South Korean village located just 20 miles away from the border with North Korea.

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

USAF pushback on new hardened infrastructure comes as emphasis grows on being able to fight from bases while under attack.

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.
F-15

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

The EPAWSSv2 boasts improved processing power and will be able to handle a greater number of threats to keep pace with developments in air defense.

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

The modular Common Multi-Mission Truck is now being proposed for launch from both air and ground platforms to carry out a wide range of mission sets.

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.
Air Combat Exercises

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

General Atomics jet-powered drone took part in the exercise loaded with 'reference autonomy stack' software from Shield AI.

Thales Scorpion will equip the F-22s of the Hawaii ANG.
F-16

F-22 Raptor Pilots Finally Getting Helmet Mounted Displays

Beyond equipping Hawaii-based F-22s, Thale's Scorpion will now be standard on all F-16s in the USAF's fleet.

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.
F-22

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

We now know the key findings of a deep review of the USAF's paused Next Generation Air Dominance combat jet program.

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

Operationalizing the RDE would be a breakthrough for low-cost, high-supersonic, long-range air-to-ground strike weapons.

A slender, partially covered naval ship that recently emerged in Washington state is the Defiant, a new medium-sized uncrewed surface vessel (USV) designed from the keel up to operate without any humans ever onboard.
U.S. Navy

Mysterious Naval Vessel Spotted In Washington State Is A New DARPA Drone Ship

USX-1 Defiant is meant to operate with no humans onboard for long periods, with missile carrying variants eyed for future production.

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.
Loyal Wingman

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

General Atomics and Anduril's CCAs are officially designated YFQ-42A and YFQ-44A, the first aircraft with 'fighter drone' prefixes ever.

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.
F-22

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

F-22s could now serve into the 2040s with the help of key upgrades, including new infrared search and track systems.

Top Aces Viper in Blue camouflage
F-16

Private F-16 Aggressors Getting Ability To Insert Synthetic Bandits Into Live Training

Top Aces' new constructive wingman initiative will make it appear that another aggressor is in the air to enemies and friends alike.

The U.S. Space Force is looking at reactivating a rocket launching site on a remote Pacific island to test technologies for future rocket cargo delivery missions. The site, on Johnston Atoll in the North Pacific Ocean, around 860 miles southwest of Hawaii, is now earmarked for the potential construction of two landing pads. This is part of the Rocket Cargo Vanguard program, which seeks to use rockets to move military supplies from one point on Earth to another much more rapidly than is currently possible.
Launch Vehicles

Notorious Abandoned Pacific Island Outpost Eyed For Space Force Rocket Cargo Delivery Tests

Historic Johnston Atoll in the Pacific could host landing pads and start tests for the Rocket Cargo Vanguard program this year.

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

QF-16s will keep providing the USAF with valuable full-size targets to shoot missiles at as the search for a stealthy replacement grinds on.

AGM114R9X seen in action for the first time
Q-9

Bladed ‘Ginsu’ Hellfire Missile Seen In Action For First Time

U.S. Central Command has released a video showing the shadowy AGM-114R9X taking out a terror target in a truck in Syria.

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.
KC-46

Cracks In KC-46 Tankers Halt All Deliveries

The USAF is inspecting its fleet of 89 KC-46s to see if the problem is systemic while Boeing works to figure out a fix.

BAD NEUENAHR-AHRWEILER, GERMANY - MAY 03: The command central of the Cold War-era former West German government bunker pictured on May 03, 2023 near Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler, Germany. The bunker, built at the site of a railway tunnel inside hills, had the capacity to sleep 936 people, had over 800 office rooms and would have served as a shelter to keep the West German government functioning in the event of war. Russia's current war in Ukraine and its recent stationing of nuclear missiles in Belarus has revived memories of the Cold War. Both West and East Germany had extensive bunker systems that Germany's post-reunification government chose to abandon in 2007, citing the post-Cold War era peace dividend and claiming that bunkers would be largely useless in the event of a nuclear war anyway.
Bunker Talk

Bunker Talk: Let’s Talk About All The Things We Did And Didn’t Cover This Week

Make sure to turn the crank regularly to circulate the air.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is in a risky position ahead of his meeting today with U.S. President Donald Trump.
Ukraine

Washington-Kyiv Relations Implode Spectacularly (Updated)

A planned Oval Office press event to talk about a U.S.-Ukraine mineral deal deteriorated dramatically, which could have far-reaching ramifications.

President Donald Trump, through his pick to be the next Secretary of the Navy, has thrust long-running criticisms of what is commonly called "running rust" on American warships back into the mainstream limelight.
U.S. Navy

Warships Caked In Rust Prompting Late Night Trump Texts To Navy Secretary Nominee

U.S. Navy ships streaked in rust have been a major point of contention in recent years as the service struggles with readiness and its image.

Meteor Missile F-35B testing
F-35A

F-35B Has Flown With Meteor Long-Range Air-To-Air Missile

The Meteor has begun flight trials on the F-35B at Pax River, with plans to integrate the missile on British and Italian Joint Strike Fighters.