Patches, Nail Polish, Shaving: Here Are the New Air Force Dress and Grooming Standards
Airmen will be subject to new uniform, grooming, and appearance standards starting Feb. 1, senior Air Force leaders announced Jan. 29.
Air Force Conducts More Deportation Flights with Armed Security Forces ‘Ravens’
The U.S. Air Force carried out deportation flights to Ecuador and Guatemala earlier this week, U.S. officials told Air & Space Forces Magazine, as the Pentagon continues to fly migrants out of the country at the direction of President Donald Trump. U.S. aircrews participating in the deportation missions have included armed Air Force Security Forces personnel, known as Phoenix Ravens, defense officials said.
Lockheed Looks to Deliver Up to 190 F-35s in 2025, Loses $1.9 Billion on Secret Programs
Lockheed Martin will deliver up to 190 F-35s in 2025, including both newly built aircraft and jets that have been in storage, company president and CEO Jim Taiclet said this week. Taiclet also said Lockheed is taking more than $1.9 billion in charges on two secret programs, at least one of which the executive described as vital to the Air Force.
Air Force Shuts Down Athena Programs for Review in DEI Purge
The Air Force’s various “Athena” programs focused on women’s readiness issues have shut down as the service conducts a review to follow President Donald Trump’s executive orders on diversity, equity, and inclusion.
Radar Sweep
Startup Castelion Raises $100 Million for Hypersonic Strike Weapons
CBS News
Silicon Valley’s enthusiasm for superfast weapons has picked up speed, with defense-tech startup Castelion raising $100 million through debt and equity to build hypersonic missile systems. The company is vying to sell long-range strike weapons to the U.S. military.
Passenger Jet Collides with Army Helicopter While Landing at Reagan Washington National Airport
The Associated Press
A passenger jet collided Jan. 29 with an Army helicopter while landing at Ronald Reagan National Airport near Washington, prompting a large search-and-rescue operation in the nearby Potomac River. There was no immediate word on casualties, but all takeoffs and landings from the airport near Washington were halted as helicopters from law enforcement agencies across the region flew over the scene in search of survivors.
After 3 Years of War, More Ukrainians Accept Reality of Likely Ceasefire with Russia, but with Conditions
CBS News
A recent poll found that just over half of Ukrainians now believe their government should negotiate a ceasefire with Russia—more than double the figure at the start of the war. But many Ukrainians told CBS News that, while they want peace, it cannot come without conditions.
All of DOD Exempt from White House’s Civilian Hiring Freeze
Military Times
Defense Department officials received a “blanket exemption” from the civilian hiring freeze ordered by President Donald Trump, according to memoranda from the Army and Air Force.
Trump Offers a Buyout to All Defense Civilians, Other Federal Workers
Defense One
The White House is offering all 2.3 million federal employees—including the Defense Department's 783,000 civilians—a buyout worth roughly eight months of salary and benefits, purportedly for employees who refuse to comply with President Trump’s return-to-office mandate.
Trump’s Missile Shield Marks Shift in Homeland Defense Strategy
Defense News
President Donald Trump’s executive order to develop a next-generation homeland missile defense shield marks a shift in the United States’ long-standing homeland missile defense strategy, which has focused on threats from rogue nations like North Korea and Iran rather than from peer adversaries like China or Russia.
Air Force Pondering CCA Drones That Don’t Require Runways as Officials Plan Next Increment
DefenseScoop
The Air Force is conducting mission-level modeling for the next increment of its Collaborative Combat Aircraft program, and options being considered include drones that don’t require runways to be launched, according to a senior officer.
Military Services Need to ‘Sync Up’ Replicator Software, Navy Official Says
Breaking Defense
As the Pentagon approaches its two-year deadline to get thousands of autonomous systems operational as part of the Replicator initiative, two Navy officials recently urged the services and the Pentagon to do more to coordinate their efforts, especially when it comes to software used on the systems.
US Space Force Rapid Capabilities Office Selects Companies for Tech Accelerator
SpaceNews
The U.S. Space Force’s Space Rapid Capabilities Office (Space RCO) announced Jan. 29 it selected 10 companies to participate in its inaugural Prime Fusion Pilot Accelerator Program, an initiative aimed at fast-tracking technologies to protect military satellites from orbital threats.
OPINION: President Trump—Reverse the Air Force Nosedive & Boost the Space Force
Forbes
“After decades in decline, President Trump is now inheriting an Air Force older, smaller, and less ready than it has ever been in its history—and planned to get even smaller over the next five years if action is not immediately taken to reverse this course,” writes retired Lt. Gen. David A. Deptula, dean of AFA’s Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies.
F-16s Have Been Using Laser-Guided Rockets to Shoot Down Houthi Drones
The War Zone
U.S. Air Force F-16 Vipers have been using 70mm laser-guided rockets to down Houthi drones during operations in and around the Red Sea in the past year. The service first announced it had demonstrated the ability to use Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System II (APKWS II) rockets, originally developed to engage targets on the ground, as lower-cost, more numerous air-to-air weapons back in 2019, but this was just in testing.
VIDEO: Pilot Survives Fiery Crash of F-35 Fighter Plane
NBC News
An Air Force F-35 fighter jet crashed at a base in Alaska, but the pilot was able to parachute to safety, all of it caught on video. It's the latest incident involving the F-35. Former fighter pilot Heather Penney, a senior resident fellow at AFA’s Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies, says she has no safety concerns about the F-35 program. NBC News' Morgan Chesky reports.
GRAPHIC: How Over 150 Bird Strikes a Day Challenge Aviation
Reuters
According to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), there were more than 270,000 reports of wildlife strikes to aircraft between 2016 and 2021. Only 3 percent of these incidents reported some form of damage to parts of the aircraft. The United States-based Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) also tracks reports of wildlife strikes and similarly shows over 90 percent of incidents had no damage to the aircraft.