Bomb builders at Hill Air Force Base, Utah, this week are testing weapons for F-35As, B-1s, and MQ-9s as part of an in-depth combat evaluation exercise looking at the effectiveness of the bombs from separate aircraft. The 86th Fighter Weapons Squadron, the military’s sole group ...
The U.S. and Polish militaries have agreed on a long-negotiated plan to increase the American presence in Poland, including adding a cargo hub and drones flown by the U.S. Air Force. The Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement, which the parties have not yet signed, follows last ...
U.S. Air Force jets and Navy ships on Aug. 2 held a joint training exercise in the Black Sea near Russia’s borders together for the second time in two weeks, aiming to fine-tune their collaboration in a potential conflict. Four F-16s from the 31st Fighter ...
USAF F-16s, KC-135s, MC-130Js, and MQ-9s linked up with U.S. Navy aircraft and ships as well as support from U.S. Space Command during a large-scale exercise in the Black Sea on July 22. The mission in Eastern Europe, with Russia watching, “was designed to train ...
The Russian Defense Ministry claims it intercepted a USAF RC-135 reconnaissance plane and an MQ-9 Reaper, as well as a U.S. Navy P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft, over the Black Sea on July 14. If verified, the Black Sea meeting marks at least the 10th ...
The House Appropriations Committee passed its version of the 2021 defense spending bill by a 30-22 vote July 14, though dissenting Republicans warned of “poison pills” in the measure that would invite a veto. The bill includes $694.6 billion for the Pentagon, including $626.2 billion ...
The Air Force wants its follow-on to the venerable MQ-9 Reaper to move beyond the surveillance and strike roles, and be able to conduct air-to-air and base defense missions with increased autonomy to lessen the number of people in the loop, the service’s top acquisition ...
House appropriators are planning to offer the Pentagon $694.6 billion for operations, personnel, and procurement, plus another $10.5 billion for military construction, in fiscal 2021. The Defense Department funding proposal is $1.3 billion higher than DOD received in fiscal 2020, but nearly $4 billion lower ...
The Air Force may not have enough remotely piloted aircraft pilots and sensor operators to stand up a new wing in 2024, as it struggles to retain personnel and increase the size of its instructor pilot cadre, the Government Accountability Office says in a new ...
A year after the House Armed Services Committee passed its fiscal 2020 defense policy bill in an unusually partisan fashion, the panel appears to be taking a step back from major fireworks and aerospace programmatic shifts in its 2021 legislation. The full committee’s version of ...
The Senate Armed Services Committee’s defense spending plan for 2021 would give the Air Force and Space Force largely what they want, with some notable tweaks. “What this bipartisan bill does is straightforward: care for our troops; preserve peace through strength; and defend this great ...
Some of the U.S. forces withdrawing from Germany will go to Poland with the new host country paying to bring in the troops. However, the overall American footprint in Europe will drop, President Donald Trump said June 24 during an appearance with Polish President Andrzej ...