All United States Air Force articles – Page 18
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NewsDeptula: USAF needs 174 new bombers to replace ‘geriatric’ force
The US Air Force needs at least 120 combat-coded next-generation bombers and another 54 for test, training and attrition reserve, which is far more than the 80 to 100 the service intends to buy, according to retired Lt Gen David Deptula, dean of the Air Force Association’s Mitchell Institute.
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NewsCAE reveals plans for extending Predator training
CAE’s defence lead has revealed plans to replicate the unmanned air vehicle training that it offers to the US Air Force to more operators of the General Atomics Aeronautical Systems family of Predator UAVs.
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NewsUSAF needs more than 80 to 100 new bombers
A former commander of the USAF’s bomber force says 80 to 100 new Long-Range Strike Bombers are not enough to meet American national security objectives, and the service should consider buying more to rejuvenate its “withering” combat fleet of Boeing B-1s and B-52s.
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NewsNew details emerge about LRS-B as contract announcement nears
With a contract announcement imminent, new details about the US Air Force’s Long-Range Strike Bomber have emerged that paint the classified project as being less exotic and probably more affordable than previously imagined.
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NewsUSAF’s first combat-coded F-35s arrive at Hill AFB
The US Air Force’s first two combat-coded Lockheed Martin F-35As have touched down at Hill AFB in Utah, marking a new era in aviation for the base’s active-duty 388th and reserve 419th fighter wings, which are to receive 70 more jets through 2019.
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NewsSenators put DOD on notice over LRS-B, KC-46A fumbles
US Senate Armed Services Committee chairman John McCain and Jack Reed have fired two warning shots at the US Air Force over its handling of the Long-Range Strike Bomber and Boeing KC-46A programmes, with the former unwittingly reporting false long-term cost projections and the later experiencing development delays and cost ...
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NewsUSAF moving F-22s to Europe as warning against Russia
The US Air Force has announced the inaugural deployment of the Lockheed Martin F-22 to Europe to counter a “resurgent Russia”.
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NewsUSAF plans to end MQ-1 Predator operations in 2018
The remotely-piloted aircraft that ushered in the armed drone revolution, the General Atomics Aeronautical Systems MQ-1, will be put out to pasture by 2018, after more than two decades of service, the US Air Force says.
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NewsPICTURES: US F-16s launch against ISIS from Turkey
The US Air Force is striking militant groups in Iraq and Syria with renewed vigour just days after six Lockheed Martin F-16s arrived at Incirlik Air Base in Turkey to support Operation Inherent Resolve.
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NewsA-10 replacement? USAF strategy calls for 'future CAS platform'
A new strategy document released by US Air Combat Command points to the development of a future close-air-support platform as the service pushes to retire the long-serving Fairchild Republic A-10 – its primary close-in attack airplane used to protect ground troops.
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NewsUSAF's first two combat-coded F-35s take flight
The US Air Force’s first two combat-coded Lockheed Martin F-35s have come off the assembly line at Fort Worth in Texas, with the second aircraft completing its first flight last week.
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NewsHolloman AFB to train 40% more Predator, Reaper pilots in 2016
Holloman AFB in New Mexico has become ground zero for the US Air Force’s shakeup of MQ-1 Predator and MQ-9 Reaper operations, and will soon be training more pilots per year than any other schoolhouse in the service, manned or unmanned, bypassing even Boeing C-17 pilot output.
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NewsUS Air Force F-16 crashes in Germany
A US Air Force Lockheed Martin F-16C based out of Spangdahlem AFB in Germany has crashed during a training exercise in Bavaria.
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NewsFirst USAF F-16s arrive in Turkey after basing agreement
The US Air Force has moved six Lockheed Martin F-16s and 300 personnel to Incirlik Air Base in Turkey following the country’s recent decision to host US warplanes as part of Operation Inherent Resolve.
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NewsBoeing, Lockheed, Northrop make JSTARS cut
The US Air Force has picked Boeing, Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman to carry its infant Joint Surveillance Target Attack Radar System Recapitalization programme forward, sidelining an unnamed fourth bidder.
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NewsRussia and China’s bomber plans could muster support for LRS-B
Russia and China’s pursuit of modern, long-range bombers is essentially an endorsement of the US Long-Range Strike Bomber, and not the start of some Cold War-era bomber race. That’s the view of retired US Air Force Lt Gen David Deptula, now dean of the Air Force Association’s Mitchell Institute.
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NewsUSAF science panel recommends MQ-9, RQ-4 improvement plan
A panel of military scientists is briefing senior US Air Force leaders on ways to make the defenceless General Atomics MQ-9 Reaper and Northrop Grumman RQ-4 Global Hawk more useful in a war against a sophisticated enemy that has the ability to hunt and kill aircraft.
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NewsUS Special Forces receive first AC-130J Ghostrider gunship
US Air Force Special Operations Command has received its first AC-130J Ghostrider gunship ahead of operational testing that it due to start later this year.
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NewsUSAF unveils roadmap for microwave weapons use
The US Air Force Research Laboratory has unveiled a technology roadmap for its cruise missile-based “CHAMP” high-power microwave weapon that successfully fried banks of computers at a test range in October 2012.
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NewsUS Special Forces pursuing AC-130-based ‘active denial system’
US Air Force Special Operations Command’s plans to mount an airborne laser and active denial system onto its new AC-130J Ghostrider gunship is maturing and has the strong support of the scientific community within the flying branch.