Daily Report

A top Chinese Air Force official says China will have fifth-generation fighters fielded within eight to 10 years—and that puts them ahead of the timeline Defense Secretary Robert Gates projected in arguing to curtail F-22 production at only 187 aircraft. Various news reports cite comments made last week by Gen. He Weirong, in a China Central Television interview, in which the air force deputy commander said the new aircraft would match or exceed the capability of similar jets in existence today, reports Global Times. Another Chinese officer told GT that the new fighter would definitely be stealthy and have "overwhelming technological advantages" compared to the previous generation. In July, Gates told the Economic Club in Chicago (transcript), Beijing "is projected to have no fifth-generation aircraft by 2020" and would have only "a handful" by 2025. Hmmm. (On China's new fighter: Aviation Week report; Flight Global report) (For background, Air Supremacy in a Downdraft)

The Air Force has too many airmen in hand—thanks to the poor economy which officials believe has led to a higher retention rate—so plans to shed 3,700 personnel during fiscal 2010 to stay on target for an end strength of...

Talk of splitting the KC-X tanker program—half to Boeing and half to Northrop Grumman—died down over the summer amid continued Pentagon resistance. However, the idea resurfaced this week in Mobile, which would be the site of a new tanker production...

On Capitol Hill today, a bipartisan group of lawmakers, led by Sen. Sam Brownback (R-Kan.), Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Rep. Jay Inslee (D-Wash.), and Rep. Todd Tiahrt (R-Kan.), are holding a press conference to attempt to sway the Pentagon, which,...

The Air Warfare Center at Nellis AFB, Nev., is anticipating the creation of the first F-35 weapons school even with arrival of the first Lightning IIs at USAF’s advanced fighter instructor facility still four years away. Paramount for Maj. Gen....

According to a letter of “strong and unequivocal” protest sent to Defense Secretary Robert Gates Nov. 15 by Republican lawmakers Sen. Sam Brownback and Rep. Todd Tiahrt, the Pentagon reportedly is negotiating to buy 100 Embraer-built Super Tucano aircraft. The...

Col. Peter Gersten, a former F-16 pilot and now commander of USAF’s first combat remotely piloted vehicle unit—the 432nd Wing at Creech AFB, Nev.—says his airmen are constantly working “all by themselves” to provide more and better intelligence for the...

Earlier this year, US News and World Report ranked the US Air Force Academy as the top four-year college in the US Western region. And the academy tied for sixth place with California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo, Calif., for having the best undergraduate engineering program nationwide. Not bad at all. However, upon closer inspection, some Daily Report readers pointed out that USAFA's engineering ranking was behind both West Point's (No. 4) and Annapolis' (No. 5). They wondered how that could be since many have traditionally regarded the Air Force as the most tech-savvy service. So we asked USAFA if the rankings highlighted issues that are cause for concern. Click here for the detailed response that Col. Rob Fredell, the academy's chief scientist, provided on behalf of the institution.

Retired Brig. Gen. Pintard M. Dyer III, who commanded Strategic Air Command’s 12th Air Division from 1981 to 1985, died Nov. 13 in San Antonio at age 78. Dyer, who graduated from the US Naval Academy, spent 30 years in...

Air Sorties in Southwest Asia, Nov. 14, 2009 Sortie Type OIF OEF OIF/OEF Total YTD ISR 30 30 60 14,926 CAS/Armed Recon 26 76 102 31,001 Airlift 138 138 42,806 Air refueling 42 42 15,256 Total 342 103,989 OIF=Operation Iraqi...