U.S. Air Force (USAF)

By Steve Trimble
An aircraft resembling a Lockheed Martin F-35 crashed on May 28 at 2 p.m. local time in New Mexico.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Brian Everstine
Inspection revealed broken part in tanker’s refueling boom, prompting inspections and two-month delay.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Brian Everstine
The U.S. Air Force has not taken delivery of KC-46 tankers from Boeing in more than two months.
Multi-Mission Aircraft

By Brian Everstine, Guy Norris
The U.S. Air Force has shown the Northrop Grumman B-21 in flight for the first time.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Brian Everstine
The U.S. Air Force is reportedly looking to pre-position bombers across the Indo-Pacific.
Budget, Policy & Operations

By Brian Everstine
The Survivable Airborne Operations Center award was a major coup for SNC, which for decades has focused on smaller commercial-derivative modificationprograms.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Brian Everstine
The U.S. Space Force has awarded Starfish Space a contract to launch and operate a new space tug as part of its broader push for in-orbit servicing.
Space

By Brian Everstine
Eric Fanning, head of the Aerospace Industries Association, laid out a list of new legislative priorities.
Supply Chain

By Angus Batey
A U.S. Air Force instructor pilot has died after the ejection seat of a T-6 trainer aircraft activated during ground operations.
Light Attack and Advanced Training

By Graham Warwick
Our roundup of the main aerospace and defense stories making the news this week.
Missile Defense & Weapons

By Tony Osborne
The company is exploring how its Medulla research project could boost the computing power of the mission systems of the Hawk.
Light Attack and Advanced Training

By Brian Everstine
A USAF F-16C crashed shortly after takeoff in South Korea in 2023 after power outages caused a series of failures to instruments in the aircraft’s cockpit.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Sean Broderick, Guy Norris
The 787 faces new quality assurance woes, but the need to add a freighter to the family has eased.
Safety, Ops & Regulation

By Brian Everstine
Service leaders in September 2023 first announced the plan to create six Air Task Forces.
Budget, Policy & Operations

By Chen Chuanren
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and IHI Corporation could maintain U.S. Air Force Lockheed Martin F-16s and Boeing F-15s based in Japan.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Brian Everstine
The House Armed Services Committee is expressing concern about progress with the Collins Aerospace ACES 5 ejection seat for the U.S. Air Force.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Brian Everstine
The Bell Boeing CMV-22 is expected to be the future of U.S. Navy carrier onboard delivery, with extended range and increased capacity.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Steve Trimble
Without any alternatives, the Air Force would have to depend on the KC-135 if a war occurs before 2028. Is it ready?
Multi-Mission Aircraft

By Brian Everstine
The measure, known as the chairman’s mark, cuts $2.97 billion from the procurement accounts to help cover the $3.83 billion increase for personnel spending.
Budget, Policy & Operations

By Steve Trimble
Air Mobility Command’s goal of fielding a stealthy, penetration tanker aircraft in the mid-2030s faces pressure from tight budgets on its current timeline.
Multi-Mission Aircraft

By Brian Everstine
The U.S. Air Force will not repair and instead will divest one B-2 stealth bomber that was damaged in a ground accident, shrinking an already small fleet.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Brian Everstine
Having shown a single airman can control multiple General Atomics MQ-9s, AFSOC is looking to demonstrate the Reapers can launch a swarm of smaller drones.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Brian Everstine
U.S. Air Force Special Operations Command is looking at near-term remedies for keeping its Bell Boeing CV-22 fleet healthy as it returns to flight
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Graham Warwick
Sierra Nevada Corp. (SNC) has partnered with Pyka to offer the startup’s electric uncrewed cargo aircraft to U.S. Defense Department customers.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Steve Trimble
U.S. Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall on May 2 flew on a highly modified version of the Lockheed Martin F-16 that was operated by an artificial intelligence (AI) agent.
Budget, Policy & Operations