Editor’s Note
The Daily Report will not publish Thursday, Nov. 23, or Friday, Nov. 24, in observance of Thanksgiving. We’ll be back in your inboxes Monday, Nov. 27.
AC-130 Strikes Iranian-Backed Militants Who Launched Missile at US Troops in Iraq
A U.S. Air Force AC-130 gunship struck members of an Iranian-backed militia who had launched a missile attack on U.S. forces in Iraq on Nov. 21, resulting in enemy casualties, according to U.S. Central Command and the Pentagon. The strike occurred after the Iranian-backed militias launched “a close-range ballistic missile against U.S. and coalition forces at Al Asad Air Base in Iraq which resulted in several nonserious injuries and some minor damage to infrastructure,” deputy Pentagon press secretary Sabrina Singh said.
More F-35s Arrive in Okinawa, Bolstering 5th-Gen Forces Near Taiwan
F-35 fighters from Hill Air Force Base, Utah, landed at Kadena Air Base, Japan, on Nov. 20, bolstering the fifth-generation airpower at the strategic location and keeping up the steady rotation of fighters there to replace the departing F-15C/Ds.
As Its Last Weather Satellites Age, DOD Works on Plans for a New Generation
Up-to-date information on the weather is important for many people’s jobs. For the Air Force and the broader U.S. military, it can be absolutely critical. Key to formulating that weather information are a small number of satellites from the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP)—which dates back 60 years. Now, there is an urgent need for an improved space-based environmental monitoring (SBEM) system to replace DMSP architecture.
10 Airmen Make History as the First U-28 Crews to Receive Distinguished Flying Crosses
Airmen who operate the U-28 Draco spy plane usually do so in the shadows, providing intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) in support of special operations ground troops, search and rescue, and humanitarian missions. But 10 Airmen made history Nov. 17...
Group of Lawmakers Urge Kendall to Speed New F-16 Jets, Upgrades for Taiwan
It's urgent the Air Force speed the delivery of new F-16Vs and upgrades to older ones in Taiwan, given the rising provocations by China in the Taiwan Strait, 24 Republican members of Congress wrote in a letter to Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall.
Radar Sweep
North Korea Claims Its 3rd Attempt to Put a Spy Satellite into Orbit Has Been Successful
The Associated Press
North Korea claimed to have successfully placed a spy satellite into orbit with its third launch attempt this year, demonstrating the nation’s determination to build a space-based surveillance system during protracted tensions with the United States. The North’s claim could not immediately independently be confirmed. Observers doubt whether the satellite is advanced enough to perform military reconnaissance.
Texas Tried to Block an Air Force Spouse’s Occupational License. She Sued and Won, Setting a Legal Precedent.
Military.com
A federal judge has ruled that the state of Texas violated a new provision of the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act in refusing to recognize an Air Force wife's out-of-state school counselor credentials—a rejection that prevented her from getting a permanent job in the state. As the first-ever decision on a law that required states to recognize occupational licenses issued elsewhere, the case has widespread implications for the estimated 255,000 Active-Duty military spouses who require professional credentials to work in education, medicine, real estate, the beauty industry, and more.
How Israel’s Shift to CENTCOM Is Paying Off During Gaza Conflict
Breaking Defense
During a media roundtable Nov. 21, the Pentagon’s No. 2 official was asked about the Defense Department’s assistance for Israel. And while material concerns and reports of a potential ceasefire were touched on, Deputy Defense Secretary Kathleen Hicks also pointed to the importance of an inside baseball change to Israel’s relations to the U.S.
Pentagon About to Pick Systems for Replicator Initiative
DefenseScoop
The Pentagon in the coming weeks will select which programs and systems will be fast-tracked under the department’s Replicator initiative that aims to rapidly field thousands of low-cost, autonomous systems, Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks told reporters Nov. 21. Hicks first announced the initiative in August, with the stated goal of delivering “attritible” capabilities to U.S. Indo-Pacific Command in 18 to 24 months to help counter China’s military buildup.
Upgraded F-35s Fly with Partial Software as DOD Hunts for Delivery Fix
Defense News
The first production F-35 Joint Strike Fighter with an early, incomplete version of the software powering a key upgrade was flown last week at Lockheed Martin’s Fort Worth, Texas, facility, the company told Defense News. The Pentagon’s F-35 Joint Program Office is considering whether a strategy of loading interim versions of the Technology Refresh 3 software into the latest F-35s might provide a way to end a monthslong delivery halt, and allow the government to start accepting the latest versions of the fighter.
PODCAST: What We Learned from a Middle Eastern Airshow
Defense One
Defense One’s Ben Watson and Audrey Decker take a look at how officials around the region are carrying on with business as usual despite Israel's war with Hamas.
Space Force Records First Suicides Since Service’s Founding in 2019
Air Force Times
The Space Force has reached a sobering new milestone as it ends its fourth year in operation: the first two suspected deaths by suicide in its ranks. The Guardians’ deaths, which occurred between April and June, mark the first time the Space Force has reported suicides in the Defense Department’s quarterly tallies since the service was founded in December 2019.
Airbus Exploring Development of Future Tanker Based on A330neo
Breaking Defense
Airbus has taken the first steps in the potential development of a new Multi Role Tanker Transport Aircraft (MRTT) based on the A330neo commercial airliner, with hopes the future aircraft could be market ready by the end of the decade. “We are thinking about the [A330]neo, it’s a very natural evolution of our [tanker] solution,” Maria Angeles Marti, Head of Tanker and Derivatives at Airbus Defence and Space, told reporters. “We are going to go from the A330-200 to the evolved A330neo.”
What's the Latest with the Grounding of the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress?
Simple Flying
Boeing's B-17 Flying Fortress was a notable aircraft from WWII, with over 13,000 produced for the US military and allies. Due to cracking and separation issues, the FAA released an airworthiness directive regarding the bomber's wing spars. Despite grounding the remaining fleet, required inspections were completed, and most airworthy B-17s are safely flying again.