Scientists with the Air Force Research Laboratory and researchers with Northrop Grumman have demonstrated technology that will allow warfighters to request and receive surveillance information via a handheld device while engaged in urban conflict. AFRL demonstrated the Heterogeneous Urban RSTA Team (HURT) system, which comprises a command and control center (HC3) that automatically determines what RSTA (reconnaissance, surveillance, and target acquisition) unmanned aerial vehicles can provide real-time information tailored to a specific field request. “The HURT system was able to simultaneously control four small UAVs and provide streaming video through the HC3 back to a hand-held warfighter interface,” said AFRL’s William Koenig.
B-1 Bomber Buildup at UK Base Hits Unprecedented Levels
March 12, 2026
About a dozen B-1 bombers are now at RAF Fairford in the United Kingdom as a base from which to launch strikes on Iran, people familiar with the matter told Air & Space Forces Magazine—potentially representing more than half of the U.S. Air Force’s mission-capable Lancer fleet.