In early June in the skies above Cannon Air Force Base, N.M., a KC-46 Pegasus from the 349th Air Refueling Squadron and a CV-22 Osprey from the 20th Special Operations Squadron came together, marking the first ever aerial refueling by a KC-46 of a CV-22 ...
Less than a year after he was nominated to head Air Force Global Strike Command, Gen. Anthony J. Cotton is in line for another promotion, as President Joe Biden has nominated him to be the next leader of U.S. Strategic Command. If confirmed, Cotton would ...
Stuart Pettis, the Air Force Association's director of aerospace education programs, hosts Lt. Gen. Tony D. Bauernfeind, vice commander of U.S. Special Operations Command, and Lt. Gen. James C. “Jim” Slife, commander of Air Force Special Operations Command, in a discussion about "Special Operations in ...
Challenged by inadequate infrastructure and vast distances, the U.S. Air Force has for decades provided airlift to France and African nations to help fight terrorism, support peacekeeping, and respond to disasters on the continent. But Air Forces Africa is calling for a better way—sharing strategic ...
Lockheed Martin has completed factory acceptance testing and delivered a new laser weapon to the Air Force, the defense contractor announced Oct. 6, with the goal of mounting it on the AC-130J Ghostrider.
Air Force Special Operations Command needs a “true amphibious” platform to enhance capabilities in the Indo-Pacific theater and plans a demo flight of an amphibious version of the MC-130J by late 2022. AFSOC commander Lt. Gen. James C. "Jim" Slife said at the Air Force ...
U.S. Special Operations Command expects a future armed overwatch fleet to quickly reach full utilization, including one squadron deployed at all times, to meet a growing global need for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance. SOCOM wants to buy 75 of the aircraft, and Air Force Special ...
The crew of an AC-130J on June 22 received Distinguished Flying Crosses and Air Medals for protecting helicopters evacuating wounded American and Afghan forces during a September 2019 fight in Afghanistan. The Ghostrider, callsign Shadow 71, provided about two hours of constant close air support ...
U.S. Special Operations Command has awarded a total of $19.2 million to five companies for prototype demonstrations as part of the Armed Overwatch effort to buy a low-cost aircraft to fly surveillance and strikes in austere locations. The aircraft selected to proceed are: Leidos Inc.’s ...
The need to prepare for great power competition means Air Force Special Operations Command is at a historic “inflection point” akin to transformations following the failed 1980 hostage rescue in Iran and four counter-terrorism operations after 9/11. “The rise of belligerent peers and near-peers who ...
Sierra Nevada Corp. and Embraer Defense & Security on March 29 unveiled the latest A-29 Super Tucano headed to Air Force Special Operations Command, painted in a unique livery referencing the early lineage of air special operations. The A-29 is painted in the color scheme ...
U.S. special operations forces need a new armed intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance aircraft to fully support all its missions, Army Gen. Richard D. Clarke, head of U.S. Special Operations Command, told the Senate Armed Services Committee on May 25. “In many remote areas, intelligence, surveillance, ...