WORLD: History

Sept. 12, 2025
Last Hurrah for the Storied U-2 By John A. Tirpak A year away from its likely retirement—and 70 years to the day after the first U-2 flight—a two-seat version of the Dragon Lady from the 9th Reconnaissance Wing at Beale...

Letters

Sept. 12, 2025
We love letters! Write to us at letters@afa.org. To be published, letters should be timely, relevant and concise. Include your name and location. Letters may be edited for space and the editors have final say on which are published. Rare...

Meet Troy Meink

Sept. 9, 2025 | By Greg Hadley and Tobias Naegele
Growing up, Troy Meink wanted to be a pilot, then an astronaut. He joined the Air Force, but his eyesight wasn't up to pilot standards, and the pilot dream was dashed. He began as a navigator, shifted into acquisition and space. He built airplanes in ...
By the time the 2026 defense budget request arrived on Capitol Hill in June, Congress was closing in on passage of the One Big, Beautiful Bill Act, a massive tax-and-spending bill that included some $150 billion for defense. The budget reconciliation measure narrowly passed the ...