A defender belonging to the 117th Security Forces Squadron guards the 117th Air Refueling Wing’s KC-135R Stratotanker fleet in March, at Sumpter Smith Joint National Guard Base, Ala. The mission of the 117th ARW is to provide worldwide air refueling, airlift, support, logistics, intelligence, and medical services in support of its community, state, and the nation. U.S. Air National Guard photo by Staff Sgt. Shelby Thurman
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2025 USAF & USSF Almanac: Installations
June 20, 2025
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Audio of this article is brought to you by the Air & Space Forces Association, honoring and supporting our Airmen, Guardians, and their families. Find out more at afa.org
Audio of this article is brought to you by the Air & Space Forces Association, honoring and supporting our Airmen, Guardians, and their families. Find out more at afa.org
Dozens of fighter jets gathered at Tyndall Air Force Base in Florida last week to kick off one of the service’s biggest air combat exercises despite the government shutdown. More than 50 aircraft and 500 personnel are participating in Checkered Flag 26-1.
Multiple Air Force B-1B Lancer bombers flew roughly 20 miles off the coast of Venezuela on Oct. 27 in the latest U.S. show of force aimed at Caracas and drug cartels from the Latin American country, Air & Space Forces Magazine has confirmed.
Members of the House Armed Services Committee say the AIM-260 Joint Advanced Tactical Missile program has been set back three months due to the ongoing government shutdown. The comment is noteworthy because the JATM's status has been kept tightly under wraps.
The Pentagon is significantly bolstering airpower near Venezuela, dispatching the USS Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group to Latin America, it said in an Oct. 24 statement. The announcement came just hours after U.S. Air Force B-1 bombers and other U.S. assets flew near the Venezuelan coast on Oct. 23.
An Air Force OA-1K Skyraider II crashed near Oklahoma City on Oct. 23, with a civilian contractor and Active-duty Airman escaping uninjured. The OA-1K was on a training mission when the crash occurred, less than 10 miles from the base.
Shield AI has entered the increasingly crowded field of Collaborative Combat Aircraft, this week announcing its “X-BAT” vehicle that stands out from others by having both vertical takeoff and landing capability and supersonic speed.
The Space Force expects to award $905 million in contracts over the next five years through a new Maneuverable GEO program, which aims to form a commercial fleet of mobile communication satellites in geosynchronous orbit.
For more than a decade, the Pentagon have steadily invested more and more of its budget in research and development compared to procurement—resulting in a “smaller, older, and less capable force than it needs,” according to a new analysis from the Center for a New American Security think tank.
As the gap between U.S. and China’s space capabilities narrows, national security space experts say the Space Force and the broader Pentagon should forge stronger connections with the Intelligence Community and NASA in order to stay ahead.
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