All United States Air Force articles – Page 13
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NewsUSAF sets aggressive IOC schedule for F-35A
The head of the US Air Force’s Air Combat Command is hopeful that the service will declare initial operational capability (IOC) for its Lockheed Martin F-35A as early as August, following a successful first off-station deployment of the type.
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NewsUS Reaper pilot shortage prompts UK to consider sovereign training capability
As the number of slots available to foreign allies at the US Air Force’s unmanned air vehicle training school continues to be limited, the UK is considering establishing its own domestic capability, ahead of a planned acquisition of a new fleet of remotely-piloted aircraft.
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NewsDraft US defence spending bill funds 11 more F-35s and 14 F/A-18s
The Lockheed Martin F-35 and Boeing F/A-18 has received strong support from lawmakers in the US House of Representatives, with the defence appropriations subcommittee voting today on a draft spending bill that would buy 11 more Lightning IIs and 14 more Super Hornets than requested by the Pentagon for fiscal ...
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NewsUSAF proposes Gulfstream G550 CAEW to re-host electronic attack gear
The US Air Force has requested permission from Congress to shift advanced electronic attack hardware from its EC-130H Compass Call aircraft onto Gulfstream G550 conformal airborne early warning airframes.
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NewsF-35 locked and loaded with improved Block 3i software
The F-35 Joint Programme Office (JPO) has locked in the final software configuration for the Lightning II that the US Air Force’s first combat squadron at Hill AFB in Utah will declare initial operational capability (IOC) with some time between August and December.
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NewsDOD keeps eye on hypersonic missiles and manoeuvring warheads
As the USA, Russia and China pursue long-range, high-speed boost-glide and scramjet/ramjet-powered strike weapons, the deputy commander of US Strategic Command Lt Gen Stephen Wilson says arming those hypersonic vehicles with nuclear warheads is not currently part of the conversation, at least for America.
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NewsDOD awaits Northrop B-21 to fill 'long-range strike deficit'
Last month, a package of Boeing B-52 aircraft belonging to the 2nd Bomb Wing at Barksdale AFB in Louisiana deployed to Qatar to support bombing raids on the Islamic State terrorist network in Iraq and Syria. These B-52s replaced the Boeing B-1B “Bone” aircraft that left the region in January ...
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News
PICTURES: RAAF A330 MRTT achieves C-17A milestone
The Royal Australian Air Force has conducted air-to-air refuelling trials between its two largerst aircraft types: the Airbus Military A330 Multi-Role Tanker Transport (MRTT) aircraft and Boeing C-17A strategic airlifter.
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News
USAF’s Small UAS roadmap calls for swarming ‘kamikaze’ drones
If the US Air Force needed to break into places like Iran, North Korea, Russia or China, it would overwhelm those countries' integrated air defence systems with tens of thousands of small and relatively cheap small unmanned aircraft acting as jammers, decoys, cameras and “kamikazes”.
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NewsUSAF basing revised bomber count on 'minimum' of 100 B-21s
US Air Force Global Strike Command (AFGSC) expects to complete an analysis of its bomber force numbers by the end of this year calendar year, and says that number will be based around a “minimum” operational requirement for 100 Northrop Grumman B-21s.
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NewsCongressional panel questions USAF's JSTARS radar plan
Members of Congress have cautioned the US Air Force against “pursuing multiple radar technologies concurrently” as it explores options for replacing the Northrop Grumman E-8C “JSTARS” surveillance, battle management and command and control platform.
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NewsHow a pilot’s NVG case brought down a USAF C-130J in Afghanistan
A deadly US Air Force C-130J crash at Jalalabad Airfield in Afghanistan on 2 October 2015 that killed everyone onboard, plus three Afghani security personnel manning the guard tower it struck, was caused by a hard-shell night vision goggle case placed in front of the yoke.
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Opinion
OPINION: Will fighter aircraft become obsolete?
Are fighter jets still of any use in modern air warfare? A quick glance at the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute’s annual tabulation of weapons exports would certainly suggest so. From Asia to the Middle East, demand for machines designed mainly for air superiority continues to be strong.
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NewsDARPA to hold open competition for XS-1 demonstration phase
The US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) will accept outside bids for the construction and demonstration of a reusable, unmanned “XS-1” spaceplane.
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NewsUSAF firming A-X requirements for A-10 'Warthog' alternative
A draft requirement document that articulated the US Air Force’s need for a new attack aircraft optimised for close air support missions is being circulated within the five walls of the Pentagon and will be reviewed by the service chief “this spring”.
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NewsUSAF backs off sixth-gen 'fighter' in quest for air supremacy
The US Air Force will begin an extensive campaign of prototyping and experimentation relating to new air superiority technologies, including new aircraft types, after completing a wide-ranging examination of future air battle concepts and weaponry.
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News
Alaska base selected to house F-35 squadrons
The US Air Force will station two operational F-35A squadrons on America’s northwestern flank in Alaska, nearby where F-22s typically intercept long-range Russian TU-95 “Bear” bombers.
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NewsDARPA selects industry teams for 'Gremlins' UAV project
The US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has picked four teams for its Gremlins project, which aims to launch volleys of small, low-cost unmanned air vehicles from bombers, cargo aircraft or possibly even fighter jets, and recover them via a Lockheed Martin C-130 transport.
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NewsPentagon touts "Loyal Wingman" for combat jets
US Air Force plans to insert a “brain” into current-generation fighter jets to create autonomous flying wingmen paired with the Lockheed Martin F-35 were given a bump today, with the Pentagon’s second-in-charge saying he expects to see “unmanned wingman in the air” before convoys of driverless Humvees.
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OpinionOPINION: High-altitude stakes soar for U-2 successor
Since the Space Shuttle’s final mission in 2011, Americans have had to explain to their children that the only way to space now is via a Russian Soyuz spacecraft, blasting off from Kazakhstan. This storyline is only being corrected with the development of the Boeing CST-100 Starliner and SpaceX Dragon ...