The Air Force Academy has sent 18 cadets to Southwest Asia over the summer as part of Operation Air Force. SrA. Clark Staehle reports that the 18, who will be seniors at the academy in Colorado Springs, Colo., in the fall, are being given “duties and tasks that will fall under their purview after they graduate.”
Numbers Game Squeezes USAF Fighter Force
Dec. 15, 2025
Congress set the legal floor for how many primary mission aircraft the Air Force had to have in its fighter force in 2018, requiring at least 1,145 fighters through Oct. 1, 2026. In each of the past past two legislative cycles, lawmakers agreed to reduce the number. But when the House passed…
