The Pentagon’s fiscal 2026 defense budget, submitted to Congress last week, accelerates the downsizing of the U.S. Air Force. It proposes divesting 340 aircraft, while only acquiring 76. These cuts risk the Air Force’s ability to prevail.
Congress
The Senate passed Republicans’ sweeping tax-and-spending package July 1 in a 51-50 vote, the culmination of a 27-hour marathon legislative session. The package—often called the reconciliation bill—includes a $150 billion package of defense funds that accounts for a significant portion of the money the Air ...
The Senate confirmed new leaders of U.S. forces in Europe and the Middle East over the weekend. Lawmakers on June 29 also approved a reshuffling of Air Force officials that will put new faces in the service’s Pentagon headquarters as well as at its largest ...
The Air Force diverted what it says was excess funding from its delayed new nuclear missile program to modify a former Qatari royal jet for use as President Donald Trump’s Air Force One, the service’s top civilian said June 26.
Iran and its proxy groups across the Middle East remain a threat to American troops in the region despite being weakened by conflicts on multiple fronts over the past few years, the nominee to run U.S. Central Command said June 24.
The Islamic State militant group remains a threat in Syria and a U.S. military presence is still needed there to deal with it, Navy Vice Adm. Brad Cooper said in his confirmation hearing to become the next head of U.S. Central Command.
House lawmakers are encouraging the Air Force and U.S. Special Operations Command to work together as each pursues long-range, long-endurance reconnaissance drones. Both entities are investing in unmanned assets that can slip into highly defended areas, loiter over a particularly valuable target for days at ...
The House Appropriations Committee wants the Air Force to be more open about how it manages its multibillion-dollar weapons acquisition programs to ensure they are fully funded and ready for the next fight.
The Pentagon is considering ditching the Air Force’s plan to buy the E-7 Wedgetail as it looks to outsource the airborne target-tracking mission to space, defense officials indicated this week.