Space Force Wants More Testers, Looking at Own Test Center to Deliver Faster

Space Force Wants More Testers, Looking at Own Test Center to Deliver Faster

April 1, 2026 | By Todd South

New approaches to testing Space Force equipment are speeding up delivery to operators, but the service needs more testers and perhaps its own space-focused test center, officials said April 1.

Those are key pieces of the fledgling force’s testing methods and future moves that will keep new technology flowing into operations, said Lt. Gen. Douglas Schiess, deputy chief of space operations.

Schiess said the service has put acquirers, testers, and operators into “test integration teams” at the beginning stages of new programs, while speaking at the Mitchell Institute’s Spacepower Security Forum in Arlington, Va.

That’s in contrast to the traditional method, which involved extensive developmental testing before bringing in system operators, who would often have other testing needs.

By bringing the various entities together early in the process, Schiess said the team can evaluate whether it has an early “minimum viable product” that may not pass all tests perfectly but brings a new capability to the force.

“Maybe have the operators, the integrators, and the contractors actually together to see what is it we’re actually going to test, when it’s time to test, to be able to say, ‘Hey, this is something that we can present to a combatant commander,’” Schiess said.

His comments echoed those shared by his boss, Chief of Space Operations Gen. B. Chance Saltzman, at AFA’s Warfare Symposium in February.

“We’re toppling the silos that used to exist between acquisitions, test, and operations. Testing is a means to an end,” Saltzman said during a keynote speech. “It demonstrates through data and sound analysis that systems will work when called upon, but no amount of testing can eliminate every risk or prevent every failure.”

The more integrated method seeks to collect early test data, assess risks, deliver a usable product to the field, and continually improve the technology in operations, Saltzman said.

“We will no longer have the luxury of pursuing perfection when a system that is good enough provides combat capability on a more operationally relevant timeline,” Saltzman said.

The Space Force is also evaluating testing needs to further streamline the process, Schiess said. Service officials are working with Secretary of the Air Force Troy Meink to determine what testing is needed.

Schiess said test plans will need to be tailored for individual systems based on how much risk the service determines it can take for a particular mission. For example, he said, not all systems require the same degree of rigor as a nuclear command and control asset.

“I think we are taking risk in those areas, but it’s risk we have to do, because if we don’t do anything then we’re taking a lot of risk because we’re not delivering anything to the warfighter,” Schiess said.

At least one industry partner, speaking on a later panel, agreed, calling both government acquisition and the space industry as a whole risk-averse.

“It’s really easy to be conservative, real easy. Let’s do another test, slow down, let’s take some time, take a month to go make a test, six months for us to run a test, then we’ll talk about it, then we’ll make a decision, we’ll be sure it runs perfectly,” said Jeff Hanke, president of space systems for L3Harris. “That’s not speed.”

Hanke said industry leaders especially need to balance risk and understand that some risk is necessary.

But to take this approach, the service needs more testers, which means more people, Schiess said.

“One of the problems is, and you’ll see when our budget comes out … that we need more manpower to be able to do that,” he said. “Because those same operators are operating the current systems that we have or we’re now going to a new system, and we’ve got to take operators that maybe have not done that before get them ready to be with the acquirers and contractors to be able to do that.”

Chief Master Sergeant of the Space Force John Bentivegna told Congress in a Feb. 11 hearing that the 10,000-member military branch needs to double in size to meet its evolving mission requirements and counter growing threats.

Additionally, the service is looking at whether it needs its own testing apparatus, separate from the Air Force. Currently, the Air Force’s Director of Test and Evaluation and the Air Force Test Center oversee Space Force testing.

“We’re working through what does that look like in the future, is that a separate Space Force test entity?” Schiess said.

The Space Force established System Delta 81 in September 2025 to help Space Operations Command and Space Training and Readiness Command, or STARCOM, obtain test and training infrastructure.

STARCOM oversees the service’s network of ranges for realistic, threat-informed test and training environments, known as the National Space Test and Training Complex, or NSTTC, according to the service’s 2022 NSTTC Vision Statement.

Schiess declined to specify particular programs using the testing integration team model due to their classified status.

But at the Warfare Symposium, Saltzman provided one example—electronic warfare. He didn’t highlight a particular system, but he may have been referring to the Meadowlands satellite communications jammer, built by L3Harris. The company gave two developmental systems to the Space Force in April 2025. The first production unit of the compact ground-based satellite signal jammer arrived in December.

L3Harris repurposed legacy hardware in the preceding Counter Communications System that Meadowlands is replacing. The upgrade reduced the number of boxes required to transport the system from 23 to seven, replacing the CCS electronics.

The Space Force’s electromagnetic warfare-focused Mission Delta 3 unit was involved throughout the development, design, and testing of Meadowlands, unit members told reporters in December.

New EA-37B Electronic Attack Planes Spotted in UK, Join Iran Fight

New EA-37B Electronic Attack Planes Spotted in UK, Join Iran Fight

April 1, 2026 | By Stephen Losey

Editor’s Note: This article was updated after U.S. Central Command confirmed the EA-37’s participation in Operation Epic Fury.

A pair of the U.S. Air Force’s EA-37B Compass Call electronic attack aircraft have been spotted at RAF Mildenhall in the United Kingdom and are joining operations against Iran.

Online flight trackers this week noted that two EA-37Bs—which are heavily modified Gulfstream G550 aircraft, loaded with electronic warfare equipment—departed Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in Arizona on March 30 and later landed at Mildenhall, using the call signs AXIS 41 and AXIS 43. 

Photographs of an EA-37 at Mildenhall surfaced on social media March 31. The photographed plane bore markings on its tail indicating it was assigned to Davis-Monthan and showed the extensive fuselage modifications to accommodate electronic warfare equipment typical of an EA-37.

In an April 1 fact sheet issued by U.S. Central Command listing aircraft and other assets employed as part of Operation Epic Fury, the EA-37B was included for the first time. It is unclear if the aircraft—and how many—have flown operational missions as part of operations against Iran. CENTCOM declined to comment on EA-37B movements when asked by Air & Space Forces Magazine, citing operational security reasons.

The Air Force now has five EA-37s, out of a planned fleet of 10. The planes will conduct multiple electronic warfare missions, including jamming enemy communications, radar, navigation, and other signals, and suppress enemy air defenses by blocking the ability of weapon systems and command-and-control networks to share data.

The EA-37 can fly nearly 770 miles per hour at up to 45,000 feet, with a range of 4,400 nautical miles, according to Air Combat Command.

The EA-37 is replacing the Air Force’s aging and dwindling fleet of EC-130H Compass Calls, which were created from C-130 airframes that date back to the Vietnam War era and have become increasingly hard to maintain. Over the last decade, the Air Force’s EC-130 fleet has dwindled from 15 down to four, even as the Compass Call played critical roles in operations like the war against the Islamic State and the withdrawal from Afghanistan.

An EA-37 Compass Call lands at RAF Mildenhall, March 31, 2026. Photo by Glenn Lockett/Instagram g.lockaviation

EC-130s have been flying electronic warfare missions against Iran as part of Operation Epic Fury over the last month.

The 355th Wing at Davis-Monthan confirmed to Air & Space Forces Magazine that it has three EA-37B aircraft assigned to it, but declined to comment on their potential movements. Since May 2025, Airmen have been conducting training sorties there on the new Compass Call, which has not previously flown any operational deployments. The Air Force’s two other EA-37s are test aircraft. 

Heather Penney, a former F-16 pilot who is director of studies and research at the Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies, said the Air Force has a track record of sending nascent aircraft into operations when there is a pressing need. She cited the 1991 deployment of two developmental E-8 Joint Surveillance Target Attack Radar System planes to take part in Desert Storm, and the use of an early version of the MQ-1 Predator in 1995 as examples of capabilities that were deployed sooner than expected and performed admirably.

Those early deployments “were not only operationally advantageous, but they fundamentally shaped and changed the way we did combat,” Penney said.

As the Air Force sends the EA-37 into operations, Penney said, it is a noteworthy moment and demonstrates that it can be successfully used in an operational environment.

“We need more of these” aircraft, Penney said. “Being able to control the electromagnetic spectrum is so crucial to modern and future warfare, and I think it has been under appreciated, because we’ve seen an under investment in these kinds of capabilities. There is this perception that you cross the red line on the threat map and you vaporize, and it’s just not how this works.”

And, Penney said, there would be no reason to fly two training EA-37s to the U.K. other than to send them into operations, as appears to be the case.

“The training assets are going to be just as capable as fielded assets,” Penney said. “It would be completely rational to deploy those assets if there was an urgent need. … If you’re just doing training operations, especially during wartime, you’re not going to get the kind of [temporary duty] funding it takes to go to Mildenhall and drink beer. That’s not what that trip’s going to be about.”

Pentagon Editor Chris Gordon contributed to this article.

Saltzman: Space Force Guardians ‘Integrated Throughout’ Iran Ops

Saltzman: Space Force Guardians ‘Integrated Throughout’ Iran Ops

April 1, 2026 | By Courtney Albon

Space Force capabilities are deployed “inside the threat zone” and deeply integrated into joint operations against Iran, Chief of Space Operations Gen. Chance Saltzman said April 1.

While the impact of aircraft, ships, and weapons used in the war thus far has been visible to a large degree, space operations and capabilities have played a largely unseen role, providing critical communication, navigation, targeting, and other effects. Those integrated effects and personnel are part of the larger Operation Epic Fury campaign, during which the U.S. military has struck over 12,300 targets, according to U.S. Central Command. 

Speaking at the Mitchell Institute’s Spacepower Forum in Arlington, Va., Saltzman confirmed that the Space Force’s component to CENTCOM, Space Forces Central, has played a role in Iran operations, which have showcased both the degree to which space systems are integrated with joint operations and the challenges that come with protecting space systems and personnel during combat. 

“They’re in the combat domain, and that means we have to do force protection,” Saltzman said. “We have to make sure we can continue to do the mission under attack, and they’ve been able to do that effectively. That’s what’s been impressive, making sure that the continuous application of space effects into the joint force have not faltered despite being under attack from the adversary.”

In a March 30 update on Operation Epic Fury, CENTCOM Commander Adm. Brad Cooper said the U.S. military has achieved “space superiority” in the context of ongoing Iran operations, meaning that it can operate freely in the domain and has denied the adversary’s ability to do so. Saltzman acknowledged that because Iran’s space capabilities are nascent, “it wasn’t really a fair fight from a space superiority standpoint.”

“I’m not looking for fair fights,” he said. “My job is to make sure that Guardians have what they need to gain and maintain space superiority—and they did. …To Adm. Cooper’s credit, he recognized that if we don’t have space superiority, whatever that means in this particular instance, decision superiority is going to lag, air superiority is going to require extra effort down the line. And so he saw it as a continuum of effects that he needed to achieve. He turned that over to Space Forces Central, and they got the job done.”

Defense Department officials, including Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine, have identified space forces as among the “first movers” in Operation Epic Fury, helping pave the way for initial strikes against Iran in late February and providing persistent communications, navigation, missile warning, electronic warfare, and other effects throughout the operation. CENTCOM hasn’t provided details on what systems are being used or how many Guardians are deployed, but has highlighted the Space Force’s role in helping to degrade Iranian capabilities and protect U.S. forces.

While Saltzman, too, declined to discuss specifics, he said the Space Force’s contributions in Iran line up fairly well with its core capabilities.

“You don’t have to think too hard to understand what it is that Guardians are bringing to the fight,” he said. “All of the missions that we do—missile warning, satellite communications. The links are vital. Over-the-horizon communications is as important now as it has ever been. We create disruption for an adversary. That’s part of what we do.”

Saltzman said Guardians are “integrated throughout the warfighting enterprise,” including at CENTCOM headquarters at MacDill Air Force Base, Fla., and Shaw Air Force Base, S.C., which hosts the headquarters of the command’s air component, Air Forces Central. Guardians are also forward deployed, he said, though he did not specify those locations. 

“It doesn’t feel like space was just added on to the operations,” he said. “From day one, because we have that service component out there integrated, we are baked in from the beginning. In other words, the plan didn’t move forward without the Guardians of the Space Force fully integrated as part of and key to that joint force.”

Pentagon Editor Chris Gordon contributed to this article.

New Pentagon Report Shows Dip in Air Force Suicides in 2024, Data on Job Specialties

New Pentagon Report Shows Dip in Air Force Suicides in 2024, Data on Job Specialties

April 1, 2026 | By Greg Hadley

Nearly 90 Airmen and Guardians died by suicide in 2024, according to the Pentagon’s annual suicide report released March 31, about a nine percent decrease from 2023.  

The decline was driven by a drop in deaths among Active-Duty Airmen, while the Air National Guard had a slight increase. The Space Force and Air Force Reserve stayed essentially flat. Across the entire military, the trend was broadly similar: decreases in the Active and Reserve components, but an increase in the National Guard.

Continuing a yearslong trend, the Active components of the Air Force and the other services are still seeing an overall increase in suicides and suicide rate dating back to 2011, with a peak in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

“The lower Active Component suicide rate in 2024 compared to 2023 is an encouraging sign. However, it is too early to say whether this short-term change signals the start of a shift in long-term trends,” the report states. 

The Pentagon released the 2024 report later than usual and did not make officials available to reporters to discuss the report, a break with precedent in recent years. Task & Purpose previously reported that the delay was due to the government shutdown last fall. 

Officials recorded 89 confirmed and suspected suicides in 2024 across the Department of the Air Force, down from 98 in 2023: 

  • Active-Duty: 60 in 2024 vs. 71 in 2023 
  • Air National Guard: 17 in 2024 vs. 13 in 2023 
  • Air Force Reserve: 9 in both 2024 and 2023 
  • Space Force: 3 in 2024 vs. 2 in 2023 

The report typically includes rates of suicides per 100,000 individuals but does not list a rate when there are fewer than 20 total deaths in a particular category, because the small sample size makes statistical analysis less reliable. 

The Active Air Force rate was 19.0, down from 22.2 in 2023. In both cases, the rate was lower than the Army and Marine Corps but slightly higher than the Navy. 

As in years past, officials say the majority of military suicides were among enlisted men under the age of 30, similar to the general population.

“Overall military suicide rates have not differed meaningfully from those of the U.S. population for most years since 2011,” the report states. “This result indicates that the military suicide rates resemble trends in the country as a whole.” 

Similarly, the report noted that suspected contributing factors in many military suicides are similar to those in the civilian population: intimate relationship problems, financial difficulties, and a previously diagnosed mental health condition. 

Notably, of those Active component service members who died by suicides, 34 percent experienced “workplace difficulties” in the year prior to their death, the report found—10 percent greater than in 2023 and the highest number officials have reported since they started including the data in 2021 report. 

More Data 

The 2024 report differs from previous editions in that it includes more detailed data on suicides by service members’ occupational codes, drawn from the Department of Defense Suicide Event Report system that records contextual data on each suicide. 

The change was mandated by Congress in the 2025 National Defense Authorization Act, after lawmakers previously directed the Pentagon to release a separate study on suicides by job code in the 2023 NDAA. The department released that report in July 2024, covering data from 2011 to 2022. 

The occupational data is something advocates have long said is needed to better understand whether specific career fields are at greater risk of suicide. 

The 2024 suicide report noted 20 suicides among enlisted Airmen working in “Electrical/Mechanical Equipment Repairers,” more than any other category. The maintenance career field is one of the biggest in the enlisted Air Force, and some advocates have argued the specialty is at higher risk of suicide given the physical and mental stress of the job. 

The report also recorded another eight suicides among enlisted Air Force “craftsworkers,” a smaller career field, and 11 among enlisted communications and intel specialists. 

Notably, the report did not break the data down by individual career fields, something advocates say is necessary to drill down on specific stressors and problems. Officials say, however, that going too granular in the data would invite “statistical instability.” 

Prevention 

The new report also detailed the Pentagon’s progress in implementing dozens of “enabling actions” recommended by the Suicide Prevention and Response Independent Review Committee, formed by congressional directive in 2022. The committee’s final report, issued in 2023, included 127 recommendations, and then-Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin directed the department to immediately implement 10 of them. After that, the department developed 83 enabling actions “modified from the remaining SPRIRC recommendations.” 

As of November 2025, the new report states, the Pentagon has implemented and “closed out” 27 of those actions. Most of those implemented are under the “Foster a Supportive Environment” line of effort, to include extra funding for military spouse career and education programs and standardizing “warm hand-offs” between mental health providers to ensure service members don’t fall through the cracks of the system. 

When it comes to revising suicide prevention training, however, the Pentagon has completed just one of 19 enabling actions. The department has also only completed two of 18 recommendations for addressing stigma and other barriers to care. 

Some pending moves may face uncertainty or changes given the sweeping personnel reforms implemented by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and the Trump administration, though. 

For example, some of the enabling actions developed under Austin called for modernizing the military promotion process through diversity, equity, and inclusion “sprint initiatives,” while Hegseth has directed the military to cease all DEI initiatives. Hegseth has also signed a memo directing reduced mandatory training requirements, while the enabling actions included expanded and revised mandatory training. 

“Recognizing that every death by suicide is a tragedy, the Department will continue to take action to support our men and women in uniform and their families, promote the well-being and resilience of the force, and take steps to prevent suicide in our military community,” the Pentagon said in a press release. “The Department continues to develop its support services, in part, by expanding the availability and accessibility of clinical services, such as telehealth.”

The report highlighted three initiatives by the Department of the Air Force:

  • Wingman Guardian Connect, a program where participants learn resiliency and mental health skills in a more collaborative, group environment as opposed to a classroom-style lecture. The program is currently offered at the First Term Enlisted Course at nine bases and will expand to 16 more in 2026, before going department-wide in 2028.
  • Airman and Guardian’s Edge, a program that teaches “peer mentors” to impart skills for “stress management, sleep hygiene, resilience, motivation, and suicide prevention” to their peers. Operational tests are planned at five bases in 2026.
  • Suicide Postvention Command Support Team, a team of mental health professionals that deploy to support command teams when more than one suicide has occurred at an installation.
Nation’s Top Airmen Honor Bud Anderson as Legendary WWII Triple Ace Buried at Arlington

Nation’s Top Airmen Honor Bud Anderson as Legendary WWII Triple Ace Buried at Arlington

March 31, 2026 | By Chris Gordon

ARLINGTON NATIONAL CEMETERY, Va.—Brig. Gen. Clarence E. “Bud” Anderson, the last surviving triple ace from World War II, was honored one last time by the nation’s top Airmen when he was buried here with full military honors March 30. 

His family was presented with an American flag that had recently flown in fighter jets piloted by Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Air Force Gen. Dan Caine and Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Kenneth S. Wilsbach.

“‘Bud’ Anderson is a hero and legend in air combat; he wrote the playbook,” said Wilsbach, who served as the general officer host of the funeral, which was also attended by Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force David R. Wolfe. “He mastered his craft, flew with immense courage, and leaves a legacy of service that will inspire generations.”

Anderson, a 30-year Airman, test pilot, and legendary World War II P-51 Mustang pilot, died May 17, 2024, at 102. Anderson is credited with 16.25 kills in the war—he received partial credit for one shoot-down—becoming a triple ace over 116 missions, according to the U.S. military.

Anderson scored all his kills of German fighters in the famed North American P-51 Mustang. None of the planes Anderson flew were known to have been hit by enemy fire, and he never aborted a mission, Air & Space Forces Magazine wrote in a 2024 obituary. Anderson scored the third-highest number of kills in the Army Air Forces’ 357th Fighter Group, which was mostly charged with protecting American bombers on missions over Europe.

Over 80 years later, a four-ship of P-51s roared over the rolling hills of Arlington’s Section 38—with one P-51 peeling off to create a “Missing Man” formation. That formation was led by four of America’s most cutting-edge fighters, F-35 Lightning IIs from the 187th Fighter Wing of the Alabama Air National Guard.

Caine said during a March 31 press conference that Anderson was “a legend to our Air Force and fighter pilots everywhere.”

Wilsbach presented the American flag to Bud Anderson’s son, James “Jim” Anderson. Other family members in attendance included Bud’s daughter, Kitty Burlington, and grandchildren. 

The flag was flown in an F-22 Raptor piloted by Wilsbach during a sortie on March 25 from Joint Base Langley Eustis, Va., military officials said. The same flag flew in an F-16 Fighting Falcon with Caine this past weekend over the Washington, D.C. area, a spokesperson for the Joint Staff said. Anderson is buried alongside his wife in Section 38 of the Arlington National Cemetery in Grave 2872.

Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Kenneth S. Wilsbach flies an F-22 Raptor while displaying the American flag that he later presented to the family of Brig. Gen. Clarence E. “Bud” Anderson. U.S. Air Force courtesy photo
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine poses with a group of Airmen before flying an F-16 sortie with the American flag that Chief of Staff of the Air Force Gen. Kenneth S. Wilsbach presented to the family of Brig. Gen. Clarence E. “Bud” Anderson. U.S. Air Force courtesy photo

After World War II, Anderson flew as a test pilot, logging time in more than 130 different types of aircraft, especially the “Century Series” of supersonic fighters. He amassed more than 7,500 flight hours, 480 of them in combat. 

Anderson deployed to Asia during the Vietnam War, including flying 25 combat missions with the 355th Tactical Fighter Wing.

“On the ground, he was the nicest person you’d ever know,” famed test pilot Brig. Gen. Chuck Yeager, a squadron mate of Anderson, wrote in his autobiography. “In the sky, those damned Germans must’ve thought they were up against Frankenstein or the Wolfman. Andy would hammer them into the ground, dive with them into the damned grave, if necessary, to destroy them.”

Anderson grew up near Sacramento, Calif., and earned his pilot’s license while still a teenager. He credited his kills to his keen eyesight.

Anderson retired in 1972, three decades after joining the Army Air Corps in 1942.

After his retirement as a colonel, he worked for McDonnell Aircraft Corp. as its chief of flight test.  He received the Congressional Gold Medal in 2015 along with other American Fighter Aces.

Bud Anderson in 2019, offering recollections of his Air Force career with Air & Space Forces Magazine.

Anderson was promoted to honorary brigadier general by then-Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr. in December 2022.

Anderson was an “incredibly special man,” Caine said. “That’s true for each and every one of our World War II vets who become fewer and fewer; they are the greatest generation.”

How the Space Force Is Supporting NASA’s Artemis II Mission

How the Space Force Is Supporting NASA’s Artemis II Mission

March 31, 2026 | By Courtney Albon

In many ways, the Space Force’s role in NASA’s Artemis II mission, scheduled to lift off from the Eastern Range the evening of April 1, is the same as any other launch it supports. Space Launch Delta 45, which oversees operations at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Fla., will ensure the launch is safe and the base is secure, and will monitor weather risks in advance. 

But the size, nature, and level of public interest in NASA’s first crewed lunar flight since 1972 means those routine range support tasks require more personnel, more analysis, and more security guardrails than a standard launch, officials told reporters March 30.

One of the biggest differences is the amount of personnel required to support Artemis II. Lt. Col. Gregory Allen, commander of the delta’s 1st Range Operations Squadron, said that for a typical launch, about four or five operators are “on console” at the range’s mission control center. Artemis will require around 28 crew members. That’s primarily because the Boeing-built rocket that’s flying the mission, the Space Launch System, lacks an onboard command-destruct system, known as an automated flight safety system.

As of 2025, AFSS is required for all new rockets, but SLS wasn’t designed with that technology built in. That means the Space Force needs additional personnel on the ready to operate the necessary range instrumentation to track and abort the mission in the case of an emergency. 

“When you don’t have an autonomous flight safety system, you have to call up multiple range assets and resources for that function,” Allen said. “That is exactly why we have so many personnel on console for this.”

Another safety consideration involves managing and protecting the large crowd of onlookers expected to gather to watch the launch. The Artemis I mission in 2022 drew nearly 200,000 spectators, and some local Florida media outlets have reported that number could double for Artemis II. 

Delta commander Col. Brian Chatman said public safety is the range’s top priority. For the upcoming launch, Cape Canaveral personnel will support NASA’s Kennedy Space Center team, providing security support where needed “to make sure that people are staying in the defined areas” and are not breaching any “keep-out zones.”

The safety team, led by Col. Meredith Beg, determines the size of the keep-out zones based on a number of factors, including mission risk and scope, and in this case, the size of the crowd. Beg said crowd size is a variable in that analysis and any risks that arise will factor in the potential public safety impact when the range determines whether the launch is “go or no-go.”

“The more folks that are around, the higher the risk number can be,” she said. “This vehicle also has solid rocket boosters. Solid rocket boosters are obviously pretty toxic—well, at least the plumes are pretty toxic—so we’re doing the analysis based on weather constraints or the day-of launch weather to see where those plumes are going. So there are chances that if the winds are such, we would not be able to have visitors and because that plume could migrate over them.”

Launch trajectory is another factor in defining the keep-out zones, Beg said—not just for the crowd gathered to watch, but for aircraft and ships operating in the area. For Artemis II, there is a “wide swath” of possible launch paths, or azimuths, the mission could follow. 

“My team is analyzing every single one of those trajectories to understand what a potential flight path is so we can make those notifications to our air and sea partners to make sure that they’re not in harm’s way as the mission takes off the ground,” she said. 

In the event that Artemis II has to abort its mission after liftoff, Space Launch Delta 45 has an Emergency Operations Center—which includes emergency management, first responders, and explosive ordnance technicians—on standby and “ready to surge,” according to Col. Chris Bulson, deputy commander for support. That includes maritime patrols as well as a unit called Detachment 3, which has four helicopters staged at the base and ready to rescue or recover Artemis II astronauts if needed. 

“SLD 45 has a robust team of folks on standby for this particular mission that are well-versed with the SLS rocket, the systems on board, and have great teamwork with our Detachment 3 partners to assist them should the recovery be necessary,” Bulson said. 

While the upcoming mission is a significant event for NASA and the Space Force, it’s just the beginning of what’s expected to be a busy run of moon-focused missions over the next several years. Asked whether the range is ready to support a higher cadence that could potentially include multiple Artemis flights in a single launch window, Chatman pointed to the spaceport’s significant growth in recent years.

“Over the course of ‘25, we did three launches in 24 hours, four launches in just over 36 hours,” he said. “We did two launches in the same launch window last year. We have more and more tightened our partnership, and continued to solidify the relationship with our KSC counterparts on the NASA side. … We’re really getting after some of those efficiency blocks that exist today to be able to facilitate the manifest that we perceive coming in the future.”

A-10 Fleet in Middle East Poised to Double as Jets Cross the Atlantic

A-10 Fleet in Middle East Poised to Double as Jets Cross the Atlantic

March 31, 2026 | By Todd South and Chris Gordon

The U.S. military is poised to double its A-10 presence in the Middle East, as the venerable close air support plane plays a key role in combating Iranian boats and Iranian-backed militias in Iraq as part of Operation Epic Fury against Iran.

Twelve A-10s from the 107th Fighter Squadron at Selfridge Air National Guard Base, Mich., flew from Pease Air National Guard Base, N.H., to RAF Lakenheath, United Kingdom, on March 30, according to flight tracking data and local aircraft spotters.

Another six A-10s flew from Pease to Lakenheath on March 31, flight tracking data showed. Those half dozen aircraft arrived at Pease from the 190th Fighter Squadron out of Gowen Field Air National Guard Base, Idaho, on March 27.

The additional A-10s are set to deploy to the Middle East in the coming days, and Lakenheath has been the primary stopover point for aircraft bound for the region.

The attack aircraft were refueled by KC-135 Stratotankers flying out of both Bangor Air National Guard Base, Maine, and RAF Mildenhall, England.

Lakenheath, Mildenhall, and RAF Fairford have been used to transfer U.S. aircraft and to stage tankers and bombers for Operation Epic Fury.

About a dozen A-10s are already in the Middle East participating in Operation Epic Fury. The A-10s have been patrolling the Strait of Hormuz and have been conducting attacks against Iraqi militia groups, people familiar with the matter told Air & Space Forces Magazine. Footage of A-10s conducting strafing runs in Iraq has circulated on social media, and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Air Force Gen. Dan Caine has confirmed the A-10’s use in the Strait.

The U.S. military is leaning on the 1970s-era attack plane, purpose-built for close air support, despite Air Force plans to retire the fleet in the very near future. Even before operations against Iran began on Feb. 28, A-10s had been active attacking Islamic State group targets in Syria earlier this year, and they have been deployed to the Middle East continuously since 2023.

On March 19, Caine said that the “Warthog is now in the fight across the southern flank and is hunting and killing fast attack watercraft in the Strait of Hormuz.” Pentagon releases showed the plane being used in training for close air support with USS Santa Barbara in the Persian Gulf in early February. The A-10 flies at low altitudes and slow speeds, which allows for longer loiter times, a benefit when targeting watercraft.

The aircraft uses its 30mm GAU-8/A Gatling gun, which can fire 3,900 rounds per minute to strafe targets.

The A-10 is also capable of carrying a host of specialized munitions, including the WGU-59 Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System (APKWS) II, the GBU-31/32/38 Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM), and the AIM-9 Sidewinder.

The Air Force has cut a quarter of its A-10 inventory since 2024 and plans to shelve the remaining fleet over the next two years. But Congress has halted some cuts.

Air Force officials have long argued that the Warthog is too old and not survivable for missions against peer adversaries.

A U.S. Air Force A-10 Thunderbolt II aircraft flies alongside a KC-135 Stratotanker aircraft over the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility during Operation Epic Fury, March 9, 2026. U.S. Air Force photo

Service leaders first contemplated retiring the A-10 in 1984, after production had ended, according to a 2015 Congressional Research Service report. Leaders didn’t think the aircraft could survive the Soviet Union’s air defense systems projected for the 1990s.

With that adversary’s fall, less sophisticated defense systems gave the aircraft a second life. It was used for 8,084 sorties conducted by 132 aircraft during the first Gulf War, according to the CRS report.

The A-10 conducted 19 percent of close air support mission sorties for the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars between 2006 and 2013, second only to the F-16 with 33 percent, according to the CRS report.

An analysis in a 2021 Congressional Budget Office report found that operating a single A-10 squadron costs $370 million annually. Only the F-16, KC-46, and MQ-9 Reaper squadrons were cheaper, at $290 million, $280 million, and $240 million, respectively.

For comparison, an F-35 squadron ran $740 million a year, the most expensive fighter. And the B-2 Spirit cost $2.29 billion per squadron.

As of late 2024, the Air Force had 219 A-10s in its total inventory. The Active component held 141 aircraft, the Air National Guard housed 31, and the Air Force Reserve operated 47. The average age across the fleet at the time was 43.37 years, according to Air Force data.

The service shed 56 A-10s across the force in fiscal 2025 and had hoped to retired all of its remaining 162 aircraft in fiscal 2026, years ahead of its previous timeline.

However, Congress resisted the sped-up plan and, in December, paused plans to retire 102 of the remaining 162 aircraft.

A U.S. Air Force A-10 Thunderbolt II aircraft provides close air support to Independence-variant littoral combat ship USS Santa Barbara (LCS 32) during a training exercise in the Persian Gulf, Feb. 2, 2026. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Iain Page

In February, the service announced it would end depot maintenance for the A-10 at the 75th Air Base Wing at Hill Air Force Base, Utah.

The 124th Air Wing, which commands the 190th Fighter Squadron, began retiring A-10s from Gowen Field to the boneyard at Davis-Monthan AFB, Ariz., in May 2025. The squadron will transition to F-16s, which are slated to arrive in spring 2027. President Donald Trump announced in April 2025 that the 107th Fighter Squadron’s A-10s would be replaced with the F-15EX Eagle II aircraft, which should begin arriving in fiscal 2028. The 74th and 75th Fighter Squadrons at Moody Air Force Base, Georgia, are replacing their A-10s with F-35s. The 163rd Fighter Squadron at Fort Wayne Air National Guard Base, Indiana, began swapping its A-10s for F-16s in 2023. The Ohio Guard’s 179th Airlift Wing and Maryland Guard’s 175th Wing converted from A-10 to cyber units in 2023 and 2025, respectively.

F-35 from Nellis Air Force Base Crashes in Nevada

F-35 from Nellis Air Force Base Crashes in Nevada

March 31, 2026 | By Chris Gordon

A U.S. Air Force F-35A Lightning II fighter from Nellis Air Force Base, Nev., crashed in the sprawling training complex surrounding the base, service officials said March 31. The pilot suffered minor injuries and is being treated after ejecting from the aircraft.

The 57th Wing, which oversees the major USAF installation near Las Vegas, said the incident occurred within the Nevada Test and Training Range, a large complex of restricted airspace covering some 5,000 square miles and over 2.9 million acres of land. The NTTR provides simulated threats, weapons ranges, and airspace for aircraft to hone tactics and supports major exercises such as Red Flag.

According to an Air Force official, the aircraft was permanently assigned to Nellis, which often hosts visiting aircraft but has its own fleet of F-35s.

The 57th Wing confirmed in a statement to Air & Space Forces Magazine that the crash occurred north of Las Vegas and approximately 25 miles northeast of Indian Springs, Nev., where Creech Air Force Base, a major remotely piloted aircraft base, is located. The unit said that the incident occurred “within the controlled airspace and restricted federal property of the Nevada Test & Training Range.”

The incident appears to be confined to the U.S. government property, with no other reported injuries other than to the pilot, according to the statement from the wing. 

“Emergency responders are on-scene and there is no impact to populated areas,” the 57th Wing added. “The pilot is safe and being treated for minor injuries. The safety of our personnel and the community remain our top priority.”

Air Force officials did not immediately provide a cause of the mishap.

NGA Launches New Small Sats to Measure Earth’s Magnetic Field

NGA Launches New Small Sats to Measure Earth’s Magnetic Field

March 30, 2026 | By Courtney Albon

Small satellites meant to improve the way the U.S. measures Earth’s magnetic field—an option to expand the military’s position, navigation, and timing enterprise—launched March 30 from Vandenberg Space Force Base, Calif.

The three cube satellites, part of the National Geospatial Intelligence Agency’s MagQuest program, lifted off on SpaceX’s Transporter-16 rideshare mission early in the morning. Once in orbit, the spacecraft will provide crucial data to boost the accuracy of the World Magnetic Model, which underpins a number of military and civilian applications—from navigation to energy to telecommunications.

“We are on the verge of proving that small, affordable satellites can deliver the high-quality magnetic data our nation depends on,” Mike Paniccia, NGA’s program manager for the World Magnetic Model, said in a statement. “These teams have spent the past few years pushing the boundaries of what’s possible with CubeSat technology, and this launch is the moment where all of that ingenuity meets the ultimate test.”

The World Magnetic Model serves as the standard guide for systems that use the geomagnetic field to operate. Because the Earth’s magnetic force is constantly changing, the model has to be updated on a regular cadence. Every five years, the NGA and the United Kingdom’s Defence Geographic Centre—who jointly produce the WMM—refresh the model to correct for those changes. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the British Geological Survey then publish those updates.

The model has since 2013 relied on European Space Agency satellites called Swarm, which carry instrumentation to measure the magnetic field, but the NGA has been working to develop new systems to supplement Swarm. In 2019, it announced MagQuest as a way to leverage technology from startups, labs, and academia to inform future plans to improve the WMM’s reliability. In 2021, it chose three teams who had advanced through a concept and design phase to build and launch their satellites:

  • Iota Technology, whose lo-1 cubesat features advanced sensor technology and deployable structures
  • Spire Global and SB Quantum, who developed a quantum magnetometer to monitor Earth’s magnetic field and update the WMM on a near-continuous basis
  • The University of Colorado Boulder, whose Compact Spaceborne Magnetic Observatory Cubesat, or COSMO, designed to provide high-quality data collection

In a March 30 press release, SBQuantum noted that while the focus of MagQuest is on identifying technologies that could improve the WMM, there are secondary implications for the data collected from capabilities like its quantum magnetometer, which it says could support alternatives to GPS for positioning, navigation, and timing.

“Unlike GPS, magnetic navigation provides reliable and accurate readings across all environments, including those where satellite signals are denied, degraded or contested,” the company said. “This makes it a strategic priority for defense and aerospace sectors seeking resilient alternatives to GPS in an era of growing electronic warfare.”

Once the MagQuest satellites fully deploy on orbit, the teams will start collecting geomagnetic data and measuring it against the latest WMM standard from 2025. Their performance will shape NGA’s acquisitions strategy for a new magnetic field data collection system, which it hopes to deliver by 2030—in time for the next WMM update.

“Beyond demonstrating scientific excellence and technical achievement, a successful mission will yield an innovative and cost-effective problem-solving approach,” NGA said. “The MagQuest teams’ nanosatellites can be built, launched, and operated for a fraction of the cost of replicating the previous Swarm satellite constellation approach.”