The airmen at Edwards AFB, Calif., who test parachutes for a living have been practicing their trade with the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter’s IGQ type 6000 parachute. Testers with the 418th Flight Test Squadron each made 10 jumps last month with the new parachute—jumping from a Twin Otter—to check if the canopy meets specifications. The F-35 incorporates the parachute harness unlike the F-16, where pilots wear their harness and hook in once seated in the Viper cockpit.
National Guard adjutants general from nearly two dozen states have signed a letter to Congress seeking multiyear funding for the Air Force to purchase between 72 and 100 new fighter jets per year to modernize the total force.The letter, sent to Congress last week, stresses the need for the Air…