Gen. Paul Hester, head of Pacific Air Forces, said PACAF was “surprised by the speed” at which China brought its new J-10 fighter from development to squadron service. “It was a little faster than we predicted,” he admitted during AFA’s Orlando symposium, but he said the new fighters don’t pose a particularly thorny problem for PACAF, even though the J-10 can refuel in the air and carry an F-16-like weapon payload. Hester diplomatically said, “It will be a fine aircraft for them.”
House, Senate Unveil Competing Proposals for 2026 Budget
July 11, 2025
Lawmakers from the House and Senate laid out competing versions of the annual defense policy bill on July 11, with vastly different potential outcomes for some of the Air Force’s most embattled programs.