The Air Force has approved the plan to give incentive pay to officers who commit to flying remotely piloted aircraft and enlisted airmen who pledge to operate RPA sensors, service officials announced Wednesday. The incentive pay is equivalent to current aviation incentive pay programs and is available to officers in the 18X RPA pilot career field and enlisted members on the new 1U0X1 RPA sensor operator track. These incentives are scaled based on an airman’s time within these fields. “This represents a significant step forward in building a career field of RPA professionals,” said Lt. Col. David DuHadway, USAF’s rated force policy chief. There are slightly more than 400 airmen in RPA career fields today, a number expected to grow to more than 1,000 over the next few years to support burgeoning wartime demands for overhead imagery and armed reconnaissance. (SAF/PA release by SSgt. J.G. Buzanowski)
New B-52 Radar Makes First Flight
Dec. 12, 2025
The Air Force’s radar modernization effort for the B-52 Stratofortress entered flight testing recently, a “milestone” for the once over-budget system that senior leaders call the start of a new era for the Cold War bomber.
