A quick reaction team from the 53rd Wing and 46th Test Wing at Eglin AFB, Fla., installed new solid state recorders on two 494th Fighter Wing F-15E Strike Eagles operating in Southwest Asia to help determine why F-15Es were getting flight display discrepancies. Al Berard, chief of test support instrumentation development, said it was the first time the SSR had been used on fielded aircraft, adding that it provided “an unprecedented amount of data” to aid troubleshooting efforts.
B-52 Stratofortress bombers marked a new first in Operation Epic Fury when some of the BUFFs flew over Iran carrying JDAM-guided gravity bombs, according to people familiar with the matter. The development signals a weakening of Iranian air defenses and a new use for the venerable bomber in the nearly…