All United States Air Force articles – Page 15
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NewsUSAF Global Hawks to get upgraded control system
Raytheon is to upgrade the ground control stations (GCS) of the the US Air Force’s Northrop Grumman RQ-4 Global Hawks, following a $104 million contract award.
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NewsUSAF Reapers demonstrate missile tracking capability
Two General Atomics Aeronautical Systems MQ-9 Reaper unmanned air vehicles have demonstrated the system’s ability to track missiles, during ballistic defence testing in Hawaii.
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OpinionOPINION: Why US Air Force needs a low-cost gun-slinger
Roll the clock back six years to 2010. The US Air Force had just shelved a proposal to stand up a new wing of fighters based on the OA-X, a concept for a propeller-driven, light-attack fighter – reviving the role played by the Vietnam-era Douglas A-1 Skyraider.
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NewsUSAF pilots add electronic warfare mission capability to UAV training
As the US Air Force faces both pilot shortages and increased demand for its unmanned air vehicle operations in contested environments, the service is offering operators new training to allow them to continue carrying out their missions while under electronic attack.
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News
USAF reaches milestone A on nuclear cruise missile
The US Air Force has released a classified request for proposals to industry for the replacement of the nuclear air launched cruise missile, known as the Long Range Standoff Weapon.
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News
FARNBOROUGH: Boeing tests hardware fix for KC-46A boom
Boeing has foregone a software fix for its troubled KC-46A tanker, in favour of a hardware solution, the company’s vice-president of defense, space and security, Leanne Caret, revealed on the eve of the Farnborough air show.
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NewsFARNBOROUGH: USAF contracts Raytheon to develop navy-specific decoy
Raytheon has been awarded $34.8 million by the US Air Force to develop a new version of its miniature air-launched decoy-jammer missile, the MALD-X.
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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.
