The Space Development Agency has added another batch of missile-tracking satellites to its expansive constellation, awarding Raytheon a $250 million contract March 2 to build seven spacecraft. Those satellites will join the already-planned 28 satellites in the Tranche 1 Tracking Layer of SDA’s Proliferated Warfighter Space ...
Operational Imperatives
For the first time the U.S. territory of Tinian, a small island around 100 miles north of the American military hub of Guam, hosted F-22 Raptors. The deployment, which began March 1, is part of an exercise dubbed Agile Reaper 23-1. Over time, the Department ...
The Air Force Scientific Advisory Board—a group of experts and researchers the department taps for independent advice on key science and technology efforts—is undertaking four studies in 2023, including two that will likely inform the service’s approach to Secretary Frank Kendall’s operational imperatives.
Rolls-Royce has started testing the F130 engine that will replace the B-52's aged TF33, the company announced. Two F130s housed in a twin-engine nacelle are mounted on a test stand at Stennis Space Center, Miss., where they will perform crosswind and engine control tests, Rolls ...
Boeing will build a prototype E-7A Wedgetail air battle management aircraft for the U.S. Air Force under a $1.2 billion contract awarded Feb. 28, the service announced. Production is set begin in 2025 and the first E-7A will be operational by 2027.
Pratt & Whitney has developed a fix for F135 engines afflicted with “harmonic resonance,” which should only take 30 minutes per affected engine to correct, company officials said. Deliveries of the engine, which powers the F-35 Lightning II stealth fighter, resumed Feb. 18 after nearly ...
The Department of Air Force's chief information officer Lauren Knausenberger will soon depart, the Air Force said Feb. 23. Knausenberger, who became CIO in August 2020, is set to leave in June.
Hoping to prod a debate on the Space Force's future, Chief of Space Operations Gen. B. Chance Saltzman unveiled his "Theory of Success" concept Feb. 22, as the force carves out its military role.
If the Air Force and Pentagon decide the F-35 fighter needs an all-new engine, it wouldn’t just give the jet range and performance improvements—it would drive a refresh of the entire fighter propulsion industrial base, a GE Aerospace official claimed Feb. 16. Competitor Pratt & ...