Air Armament Center officials at Eglin AFB, Fla., have completed a series of test flight demonstrations for the Weapon Data Link Network—leading ultimately to the ability to communicate with a weapon after it has left an aircraft. The WDLN defines a standard way for aircrews, battlefield airmen, and a Combined Air Operations Center to “talk” with network-enabled weapons. It enables users to provide target updates, change the target, or abort the strike, says Kevin Sura, who led the demonstration. The demo team produced more than 140 runs across 12 official demonstration missions, during which the test weapons confirmed current information, reported their status, and provided bomb hit indication information—just as planned.
Multiple U.S. Air Force B-2 Spirit stealth bombers have deployed out of Whiteman Air Force Base, Mo., June 21 as President Donald Trump weighs whether to join Israel’s campaign against Iran, Air & Space Forces Magazine has confirmed.