BWB to Take to the California Skies: The Boeing X-48B blended wing prototype we reported on last month is slated for flight test sometime this year, according to the Los Angeles Daily News. The joint team of NASA, USAF, and Boeing concluded wind tunnel testing in May with one of two prototypes Boeing has built. It will be shipped to California to be used as a backup to the second vehicle when it starts flight tests out of Edwards Air Force Base. The Daily News reports that the blended wing body (BWB) aircraft will fly no higher than 10,000 feet and no more than 135 miles per hour during testing.
Lt. Gen. Dan Caine, nominee to be chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told the Senate Armed Services Committee that the Defense Department needs to upgrade its electronic warfare capability and its EW training ranges; just as his predecessor said at his own confirmation hearing.