The 8th Air Force Museum at Barksdale AFB, La., on Oct. 6 unveiled a marker honoring retired Maj. Gen. Lewis Lyle, who flew 69 combat missions in a B-17 during World War II. The plaque is near a display of a B-17 bearing the tail markings of one of Lyle’s units, reported the Shreveport Times. The 90-year-old Lyle retired from the service in 1967 as commander of the 818th Strategic Aerospace Division.
The rate of building B-21 bombers would speed up if the fiscal 2026 defense budget passes. But it remains unclear how much capacity would be added, and whether the Air Force would simply build the bombers faster, or buy more.