Russia officially unveiled its new Checkmate fighter at the MAKS airshow July 20, offering a series of ambitious performance claims about the jet, which it is clearly promoting as a low-cost, single-engined alternative to the F-35 in the world market. Company officials said an unmanned version may become available. Yury Slyusar, general director of United Aircraft Corp.—parent company for all of Russia's aircraft makers—said Checkmate will be capable of defeating “fifth-generation foreign aircraft” and will be able to “withstand sixth-generation systems that may appear in coming decades." The company did not say whether the article on display was a mockup or prototype.

The Taliban controls approximately half of all district centers in Afghanistan, but the Afghan military is consolidating its forces to protect population centers and the “endgame” is not yet written, the U.S. military’s top general said July 21. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark A. Milley, during a briefing at the Pentagon, said the Taliban takeover is not a “foregone conclusion” as Afghan forces are still well-trained and equipped. The Taliban controls about 213 district centers, about half of the total 419, and is fighting to cut off population centers, such as provincial capitals and Kabul. While the Taliban has encroached on them, the group has not captured any of the 34 provincial capitals.

Senior Pentagon leaders would “like to see more” nominations and confirmations for top Defense Department civilian positions as several key spots remain vacant, but Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III played down concerns regarding the impact of the slow pace of picks. “This is something … all of my leadership [team] remains focused on each and every day, and we continue to work with the White House to make sure that we have quality and qualified applicants to fill these seats,” Austin said during a July 21 briefing.

U.S. Special Operations Command expects a future armed overwatch fleet to quickly reach full utilization, including one squadron deployed at all times, to meet a growing global need for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance. SOCOM wants to buy 75 of the aircraft, and Air Force Special Operations Command has said it wants procurement to start in fiscal 2022. SOCOM boss Army Gen. Richard D. Clarke, in testimony to the House Armed Services subcommittee on intelligence and special operations, said the armed overwatch program is coming on as existing systems are aging out, showing the requirement for the aircraft procurement to continue.

July 21, 2021, marked the 100th anniversary of the sinking of the Ostfriesland, a former German battleship, by aerial bombardment from a brigade led by Brig. Gen. William Mitchell in a demonstration of the superiority of airpower. To commemorate the occasion, Air Force Magazine is republishing this 2008 magazine feature recounting the historic episode.