Daily Report

The F-35 “can in no way be considered a luxury,” Air Combat Command chief Gen. Michael Hostage said in his speech at AFA’s Air Warfare Symposium in Orlando, Fla. “We must distinguish between the problems caused by a less-than-perfect acquisition...

Gen. Michael Hostage, head of Air Combat Command, said he is “pushing back” on the idea of locking in requirements for future aircraft. Answering questions after his speech at AFA’s Air Warfare Symposium in Orlando, Fla., last week, Hostage said...

Historically, the Air Force has focused a lot of time and money on its aircraft, but not as much money on airmen and their families, said Air Force Special Operations Command boss Lt. Gen. Eric Fiel. However, the service is...

The United States is more secure today thanks to the path taken by the nation and Russia to shrink their Cold War nuclear arsenals, said Gen. Robert Kehler, head of US Strategic Command. “We have dramatically reduced the size of...

Gen. Robert Kehler, head of US Strategic Command, said the new fiscal environment caused the Defense Department to adjust some of the modernization targets for the nuclear weapons triad, such as the two–year delay to the nation’s next ballistic missile...

As part of the Pentagon’s rebalancing of forces, a significant amount of attention is now dedicated to the Pacific, Gen. Gary North, Pacific Air Forces commander, told reporters last week at AFA’s Air Warfare Symposium in Orlando, Fla. As such,...

Investigators were unable to pinpoint the cause of an F-15C crash on a sortie over the Nevada Test and Training Range last October, announced Air Combat Command. "Given the limited evidence available, the [accident investigation board] president was unable to determine a mishap cause by clear and convincing evidence," states the investigators' report. Assigned to Nellis, AFB, Nev., the F-15 was on a single-ship test sortie on Oct. 24, 2011. Recovering from a high-G evasive breaking maneuver, the aircraft departed controlled flight and entered a flat spin, according to the AIB report's findings. When engines and flight control inputs failed to recover the aircraft, the pilot lowered the undercarriage in accordance with procedures, regaining control at approximately 4,000 feet in altitude. Attempting to regain flight speed, the pilot applied full power in "an aggressive recovery," states the report. The F-15 stalled again, forcing the pilot's low-altitude ejection near 1,400 feet. He was not seriously injured. The Eagle was destroyed upon impact on unoccupied federal land 85 miles northwest of Nellis, a loss estimated at $32 million. (AIB report; caution, large-sized file.)

An unarmed Minuteman III ICBM lifted off from Vandenberg AFB, Calif., en route to the Kwajalein test range in the central Pacific during a routine test of the accuracy and reliability of the Minuteman weapon system, announced officials with the...

President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama on Wednesday will host a dinner for 78 US military personnel to express the nation’s gratitude to, and recognize the significant contributions of, the more than 1 million Americans who served during Operation...

Boeing will offer the advanced F-15 Silent Eagle to South Korea in the third phase of the ongoing F-X competition to replace the country’s remaining F-4 Phantoms. “Their request for proposal just came out on Jan. 30, and we are...

Lockheed Martin officials are pushing a new variant of the C-130J aircraft to international customers who may not need the full tactical capability of the current airlifter, said Jim Grant, the company’s vice president for air mobility programs. The C-130XJ,...