The Air Force is ready to add more nuclear warheads to its bomber aircraft and underground missiles if ordered to do so when a key arms control treaty expires next year, its top nuclear officer said June 5.
Operational Imperative 6: Global Strike
The Air Force should buy 145 stealth B-21 bombers to cope with the increased threats to U.S. security since that program came into being, Gen. Anthony J. Cotton, head of U.S. Strategic Command, said. He also said the Air Force and the Navy should reconsider ...
Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall, on the verge of leaving the Pentagon, said he would accelerate production of the B-21 bomber if there was money to do so. But even so, it couldn’t happen right away, he said in an interview with Air & Space ...
The Air Force Global Strike Command is considering long-range, autonomous Collaborative Combat Aircraft as partners for its bombers but is waiting to see how they prove out with the fighter force first, the head of the command said Dec. 5.
There is no set timeline for retiring the B-1 and B-2 bomber fleets, but when one is established it will be based on strategic conditions and when the B-21 is available to succeed them, the commander of 8th Air Force said Dec. 4.
“Integration” will be the key to future Air Force success and will be the key to achieving war-winning advantage over adversaries in the future—if USAF can pull it off, senior USAF leaders said Nov. 13.
The Air Force has started using a new Boeing pylon—the Load Adaptable Modular (LAM) pylon—which should help streamline testing new weapons, particularly hypersonic weapons, as other kinds of testing consume B-52 test assets.
The Air Force expects to start test-flying the Hypersonic Attack Cruise Missile starting this fall, according to a new report from the Government Accountability Office. Tests will iterate the design and continue until 2027, at which point HACM will transition to a major defense program ...
Initial operational capability for the B-52J—the new designation for the bomber after extensive re-engining and upgrade programs—won’t be achieved until 2033. The three-year delay is due to issues both with its new engines and new radar, the Government Accountability Office said in a new report.