Open Talons

An upcoming Netflix documentary promises an inside look at the Air Force’s premier aerial demonstration team. Premiering May 23, “Air Force Elite: Thunderbirds” will showcase the skill, trust, and hard work it takes to fly six F-16 fighters in tight...

Lawmakers in Congress are working to inject tens of billions of dollars into President Donald Trump’s ambitious “Golden Dome” plan for comprehensive missile defense of the U.S. homeland in the coming months.

Everything’s coming together to make 2025 a pivotal year in the Space Force’s long-running effort to make GPS more resistant to jamming, a senior service official said April 29. “That entire architecture is really focused now on meeting the anti-jam and spoofing threat,” Cordell A. DeLaPena, program executive officer for military…

The new defense reconciliation bill includes $7.2 billion for Air Force and Navy aviation accounts, almost half of which will buy more F-15EXs. While electronic warfare, drones, connectivity and airlift all get attention, the F-35 was conspicuously absent from the package, with no explanation given.

Young Air Force and Space Force recruits in Basic Military Training will not be trading in their non-firing M4 carbines for live M4s anytime soon. After leaders previously said they wanted to make the switch, Maj. Gen. Wolfe Davidson said it may not be necessary for Airmen to carry real…

The 86th Operations Group at Ramstein Air Base, Germany, is pioneering a new program that could help improve mental health outcomes for aviators across the Air Force.

The heads of the House and Senate Armed Services committees have unveiled a plan for $150 billion in new defense spending, as part of a massive planned package meant to advance President Donald Trump’s agenda. The proposed bill would inject several billion dollars into major Air Force priorities like nuclear modernization, aircraft…

Boeing appears to have become to overcome the problems that led to billions in losses on fixed-price defense contracts in recent years, point the company back toward profitabily, says Boeing president and CEO Kelly Ortberg.

The Space Force is ready to start using its newest weather satellite after finishing testing and achieving initial operational capability, the service announced April 24.