It seems we missed a relatively important feature of the last test of the Missile Defense Agency’s ground-based ballistic missile interceptor system in that it provided the first occasion for airmen at Vandenberg AFB, Calif., to actually launch an interceptor missile from a Vandy MDA silo. “This was a huge launch for us,” said Col. Jack Weinstein, commander of 30th Space Wing at Vandenberg. The Pentagon plans ultimately to deploy two interceptors in silos at Vandenberg, in addition to up to 16 in Alaska.
General Atomics, the maker of one of the Air Force’s first Collaborative Combat Aircraft, has ambitious plans for its family of semi-autonomous drones beyond the FQ-42, including a flying-wing aircraft capable of carrying out both reconnaissance and strike missions. Meanwhile, the Air Force Research Laboratory announced a new program to…