HTML Version <!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en"><head><title>F-16s That Flew on 9/11 to Be Preserved</title><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html;" /><meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1, shrink-to-fit=no"><meta http-equiv="X-UA-Compatible" content="IE=9; IE=8; IE=7; IE=EDGE" /><style type="text/css">body { margin: 0 !important; } #overall-container table { max-width: 680px !important; } @media only screen and (max-width: 480px) { body { width:100% !important; min-width:100% !important; } table, td { max-width: 100% !important; } table#email-container { width: 100% !important; } img { max-width: 100% !important; height: auto !important; } .bodytext, h2.article-title { margin: 0.8em !important; } .article-hr { margin: 1.0em 0.5em !important; } .footer-small p, .footer-small a { font-size: 0.4em !important; } .wp-post-image { margin: 0.3em 0 !important; } .editors-note { padding: 0.5em 0.8em !important; } }</style></head><body><div style="display: none; font-size: 1px; color: #333333; line-height: 1px; max-height: 0px; max-width: 0px; opacity: 0; overflow: hidden;">PLUS: Going Deep on USAF’s Aerial Spray Unit and USSF Taps Texas Site for Radar</div><table id="overall-container" align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"><tbody><tr><td align="center"><table id="email-container" align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="width: 680px;"><tbody><tr><td><a href="https://www.rolls-royce.com/products-and-services/defence/the-ae-engine-story.aspx?utm_source=campaign-monitor&utm_medium=advertising&utm_campaign=afaasc26_afadaily_em&utm_content=readiness_engine" target="_blank"><img width="680" height="90" src="https://www.airandspaceforces.com/app/uploads/2026/08/RR_Sept26_GTP_10853_680x90-DailyReport_v02-OL.png"></a></td></tr><tr class="logo"><td align="center"><img style="margin: 0;" alt="airforcemag daily report logo" height="92" width="450" src="https://www.airandspaceforces.com/Image/AFM_Daily_Report.jpg"></td></tr><tr class="date"><td align="center"><p class="bodytext" style="font-size: 1em; font-family: Georgia, serif; color: #1E4A85; font-weight: bold; margin: 0 0 .8em !important;">Sept. 11, 2026</p></td></tr><tr class="date"><td align="center"><p class="article-author" style="font-size: 0.8em; text-align: center; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #666666; font-weight: normal; margin: 0 0 0.8em;">Edited by Greg Hadley with Stephen Losey, Tobias Naegele and Todd South</p></td></tr><tr class="view-in-browser"><td align="center"><a href="https://www.airandspaceforces.com/daily-report/20260911/?src=dr" style="background: #3F6EB2; border-radius: 9px; color: #ffffff; text-decoration: none; padding: 0.8em 2em; display: inline-block; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: .7em; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 1em;" target="_blank">View In Browser</a></td></tr><tr class="featured-image"><td align="center"><img width="680" height="450" src="https://www.airandspaceforces.com/app/uploads/2026/09/F-16s-over-DC.jpg" class="attachment-680x9999 size-680x9999 wp-post-image" alt="" style="width: 100%; height: auto; margin: 0.8em 0 0.1em;" decoding="async" fetchpriority="high" srcset="https://www.airandspaceforces.com/app/uploads/2026/09/F-16s-over-DC.jpg 1024w, https://www.airandspaceforces.com/app/uploads/2026/09/F-16s-over-DC-450x298.jpg 450w, https://www.airandspaceforces.com/app/uploads/2026/09/F-16s-over-DC-680x450.jpg 680w, https://www.airandspaceforces.com/app/uploads/2026/09/F-16s-over-DC-768x509.jpg 768w, https://www.airandspaceforces.com/app/uploads/2026/09/F-16s-over-DC-675x447.jpg 675w" sizes="(max-width: 680px) 100vw, 680px" /><em style='display: block; font-size: 0.8em; margin-bottom: 0.6em'>Air Force F-16C Fighting Falcons from the 121st Fighter Squadron, 113th Wing, of the District of Columbia (DC) Air National Guard (ANG), fly over Washington, D.C., during an Operation Noble Eagle flight. U.S. Air Force Photo</em></td></tr><tr class="article"><td><h2 class="article-title" style="font-size: 1.1em; text-align: center; margin: 0; font-family: Georgia, serif; color: #222222; font-weight: bold; margin: 0.8em 0; line-height: 1.5em;"><a href="https://www.airandspaceforces.com/f-16s-defended-capital-9-11-preserved/?src=dr" style="text-decoration: none; color: #222222;">F-16s That Defended Capital on 9/11 Preserved for History</a></h2><p class="article-author" style="font-size: 0.8em; text-align: center; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #666666; font-weight: normal; margin: 0.8em 0;">By Tobias Naegele</p><p class="bodytext" style="font-size: 1em; font-family: Georgia, serif; margin: 0; color: #555555; line-height: 1.7;">Three F-16s that flew in defense of Washington, D.C., on Sept. 11, 2001, will be retired and preserved as museum artifacts. </p></td></tr><tr><td><hr class="article-hr" style="border: none; border-top: 1px solid #aaaaaa; margin: 1.6em 0;"></td></tr><tr class="article"><td><h2 class="article-title" style="font-size: 1.1em; text-align: center; margin: 0; font-family: Georgia, serif; color: #222222; font-weight: bold; margin: 0.8em 0; line-height: 1.5em;"><a href="https://www.airandspaceforces.com/usaf-only-aerial-spray-unit-high-demand-aging-equipment/?src=dr" style="text-decoration: none; color: #222222;">USAF’s Only Aerial Spray Unit Squeezed by Demand, Aging Equipment, Slow Modernization</a></h2><p class="article-author" style="font-size: 0.8em; text-align: center; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #666666; font-weight: normal; margin: 0.8em 0;">By Todd South</p><p class="bodytext" style="font-size: 1em; font-family: Georgia, serif; margin: 0; color: #555555; line-height: 1.7;">Over the past few months and peaking in August, crews with the 910th Airlift Wing out of Youngstown Air Reserve Station, Ohio, have been running nighttime, low-flying missions to kill a ubiquitous and deadly adversary that’s plagued Americans for centuries—mosquitoes. </p></td></tr><tr><td align="center"><a href="https://www.rise8.us/clp/guarantee?utm_source=afa&utm_medium=Partner&utm_campaign=51741075-AFA%20Cyber%202026&utm_content=newsletter-banner"><img width="680" height="265" src="https://www.airandspaceforces.com/app/uploads/2026/08/Rise8_AFA26_news_alert_680x265_V2.png" style="margin: 1.1em 0;"></a></td></tr><tr class="article"><td><h2 class="article-title" style="font-size: 1.1em; text-align: center; margin: 0; font-family: Georgia, serif; color: #222222; font-weight: bold; margin: 0.8em 0; line-height: 1.5em;"><a href="https://www.airandspaceforces.com/space-force-texas-site-new-deep-space-radar/?src=dr" style="text-decoration: none; color: #222222;">Space Force Taps Texas Site for New Deep Space Radar, Targets Operations in 2030</a></h2><p class="article-author" style="font-size: 0.8em; text-align: center; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #666666; font-weight: normal; margin: 0.8em 0;">By Greg Hadley</p><p class="bodytext" style="font-size: 1em; font-family: Georgia, serif; margin: 0; color: #555555; line-height: 1.7;">The Space Force has selected a site in north Texas as the preferred location for the final site of its new Deep Space Advanced Radar Capability, the service announced Sept. 9.</p></td></tr><tr><td><hr class="article-hr" style="border: none; border-top: 1px solid #aaaaaa; margin: 1.6em 0;"></td></tr><tr class="article"><td><h2 class="article-title" style="font-size: 1.1em; text-align: center; margin: 0; font-family: Georgia, serif; color: #222222; font-weight: bold; margin: 0.8em 0; line-height: 1.5em;"><a href="https://www.airandspaceforces.com/global-strike-campaign-b-1-b-52-maintenance-parts-supply/?src=dr" style="text-decoration: none; color: #222222;">Global Strike ‘Campaign’ Aims to Speed Up B-1, B-52 Maintenance, Parts Supply</a></h2><p class="article-author" style="font-size: 0.8em; text-align: center; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #666666; font-weight: normal; margin: 0.8em 0;">By Stephen Losey</p><p class="bodytext" style="font-size: 1em; font-family: Georgia, serif; margin: 0; color: #555555; line-height: 1.7;">One year into a new campaign to boost readiness rates for the B-1B Lancer and B-52H Stratofortress bombers, Air Force Global Strike Command is claiming some early wins and planning to forge ahead with more improvements.</p></td></tr><tr><td align="center"><a href=" https://www.marvintest.com/landing/smartcan3"><img width="680" height="265" src="https://www.airandspaceforces.com/app/uploads/2026/08/Marvin-Test_Sept26_AD1_680x265-A.jpg" style="margin: 1.1em 0;"></a></td></tr><tr class="article"><td><h2 class="article-title" style="font-size: 1.1em; text-align: center; margin: 0; font-family: Georgia, serif; color: #222222; font-weight: bold; margin: 0.8em 0; line-height: 1.5em;"><a href="https://www.airandspaceforces.com/aetc-blueprint-ai-training-all-airmen/?src=dr" style="text-decoration: none; color: #222222;">AETC Launches Blueprint with AI Training for All Airmen</a></h2><p class="article-author" style="font-size: 0.8em; text-align: center; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #666666; font-weight: normal; margin: 0.8em 0;">By Todd South</p><p class="bodytext" style="font-size: 1em; font-family: Georgia, serif; margin: 0; color: #555555; line-height: 1.7;">Strategic guidance from the command in charge of Air Force training lays out a plan to train all Airmen in artificial intelligence and build “Digital Airmen” across the force’s training and education enterprise.</p></td></tr><tr><td align="center"><a href="https://armynavy.usaaevents.com"><img width="680" height="265" src="https://www.airandspaceforces.com/app/uploads/2026/05/USAA_June26_DR_680x265.jpg" style="margin: 1.1em 0;"></a></td></tr><tr class="row-spacer" height="25"><td> </td></tr><tr><td align="center" class="radar-sweep" style="background-color: #F4F5F9;"><table id="radar-sweep" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" valign="top" width="90%"></tbody><tr class="row-spacer" height="24"><td> </td></tr><tr class="title""><td align="center"><h3 style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.3em; color: #222222; font-weight: bold;">Radar Sweep</h3></td></tr><tr class="row-spacer" height=12><td> </td></tr><tr><td align="left"><h2 style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.1em; color: #222222; font-weight: bold; margin: 0;">Air Force Tunes Up Quantum Navigation for a Fight Without GPS</h2><p><a class="radar-link" href="https://taskandpurpose.com/news/air-force-quantum-navigation-gps/" style="color: #214a86; font-size: 1em; font-weight: bold; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;" target="_blank">Task & Purpose</a> </p><p class="bodytext-radar" style="font-size: 1em; font-family: Georgia, serif; color: #555555; line-height: 1.7; margin: 0;">To prepare for a no-GPS sky, a Pentagon test flight last month over Alaska made a major leap toward how the U.S. military plans to fly to and from targets without the satellite system, overseen by the Pentagon’s newest technology unit.</p></td></tr><tr><td><hr style="border: none; border-top: 1px solid #dddddd; margin: 1.6em 0;"></td></tr><tr><td align="left"><h2 style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.1em; color: #222222; font-weight: bold; margin: 0;">With Reconciliation Uncertain, Pentagon Eyeing Plan to Retool FY27 Priorities with Congress</h2><p><a class="radar-link" href="https://breakingdefense.com/2026/09/with-reconciliation-uncertain-pentagon-eyeing-plan-to-retool-fy27-priorities-with-congress/" style="color: #214a86; font-size: 1em; font-weight: bold; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;" target="_blank">Breaking Defense</a> </p><p class="bodytext-radar" style="font-size: 1em; font-family: Georgia, serif; color: #555555; line-height: 1.7; margin: 0;">If Congress does not pass the full $350 billion reconciliation funding requested by the Pentagon, the department is prepared to work with lawmakers to figure out how to shuffle key priorities into the base budget, the department’s comptroller Jules Hurst told Breaking Defense on Sept. 10.</p></td></tr><tr><td><hr style="border: none; border-top: 1px solid #dddddd; margin: 1.6em 0;"></td></tr><tr><td align="left"><h2 style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.1em; color: #222222; font-weight: bold; margin: 0;">Zamir Says IDF to Open New ‘Unmanned Systems and AI’ Branch by December</h2><p><a class="radar-link" href="https://www.timesofisrael.com/zamir-says-idf-to-open-new-unmanned-systems-and-ai-branch-by-december/" style="color: #214a86; font-size: 1em; font-weight: bold; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;" target="_blank">The Times of Israel</a> </p><p class="bodytext-radar" style="font-size: 1em; font-family: Georgia, serif; color: #555555; line-height: 1.7; margin: 0;">IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir announced on Sept. 8 that the military would soon inaugurate a new “unmanned systems and artificial intelligence” branch. Currently, the Israel Defense Forces has three branches — the Ground Forces, Air Force, and Navy. The existing branches are each headed by a major general. A new fourth branch would be an unprecedented move for the military.</p></td></tr><tr><td><hr style="border: none; border-top: 1px solid #dddddd; margin: 1.6em 0;"></td></tr><tr><td align="left"><h2 style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.1em; color: #222222; font-weight: bold; margin: 0;">Top Air and Space Force Leaders Will Gather amid Unresolved Iran War, Budget Uncertainty</h2><p><a class="radar-link" href="https://www.defenseone.com/policy/2026/09/top-air-and-space-force-leaders-will-gather-amid-unresolved-iran-war-budget-uncertainty/415913/?oref=d1-featured-river-secondary" style="color: #214a86; font-size: 1em; font-weight: bold; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;" target="_blank">Defense One</a> </p><p class="bodytext-radar" style="font-size: 1em; font-family: Georgia, serif; color: #555555; line-height: 1.7; margin: 0;">Just three days after top military leaders left the Air and Space Force Association’s February conference in Colorado, the U.S. and Israel struck Iran, commencing Operation Epic Fury. Now, more than six months later, service officials are scheduled to gather again outside Washington, D.C. to pitch their top budget priorities as the unresolved war wages on.</p></td></tr><tr><td><hr style="border: none; border-top: 1px solid #dddddd; margin: 1.6em 0;"></td></tr><tr><td align="left"><h2 style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.1em; color: #222222; font-weight: bold; margin: 0;">DOD Cyber Strategy Aims for ‘Something Big, Something Muscular’ in Offensive Ops</h2><p><a class="radar-link" href="https://breakingdefense.com/2026/09/dod-cyber-strategy-aims-for-something-big-something-muscular-in-offensive-ops/" style="color: #214a86; font-size: 1em; font-weight: bold; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;" target="_blank">Breaking Defense</a> </p><p class="bodytext-radar" style="font-size: 1em; font-family: Georgia, serif; color: #555555; line-height: 1.7; margin: 0;">The forthcoming Pentagon cyber strategy will focus on delivering “big outcomes” for the defense secretary and President Donald Trump in the way of offensive actions, according to a top cyber official.</p></td></tr><tr><td><hr style="border: none; border-top: 1px solid #dddddd; margin: 1.6em 0;"></td></tr><tr><td align="center"><a href="https://www.uav.com/" target="_blank"><img width="300" height="250" src="https://www.airandspaceforces.com/app/uploads/2026/08/GA_2608_FQ-42A_FORCE_MULTIPLIED_Digital_300x250px_L23463.png"></a></td></tr><tr><td><hr style="border: none; border-top: 1px solid #dddddd; margin: 1.6em 0;"></td></tr><tr><td align="left"><h2 style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.1em; color: #222222; font-weight: bold; margin: 0;">Decades of Delayed Maintenance Has Left Pentagon Networks in ‘Potential Peril’ for the AI Age, Cyber Defense Commander Says: ‘No More.’</h2><p><a class="radar-link" href="https://defensescoop.com/2026/09/10/delayed-maintenance-left-pentagon-networks-in-potential-peril-for-ai-age/" style="color: #214a86; font-size: 1em; font-weight: bold; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;" target="_blank">DefenseScoop</a> </p><p class="bodytext-radar" style="font-size: 1em; font-family: Georgia, serif; color: #555555; line-height: 1.7; margin: 0;">The top general in charge of securing and defending the Pentagon’s cyber infrastructure said Sept. 10 that decades of delayed maintenance has left DOD networks increasingly vulnerable in the AI age, adding to the drumbeat of warnings across the field about agent-instigated hacks.</p></td></tr><tr><td><hr style="border: none; border-top: 1px solid #dddddd; margin: 1.6em 0;"></td></tr><tr><td align="left"><h2 style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.1em; color: #222222; font-weight: bold; margin: 0;">Iran Is Producing Ballistic Missiles Again</h2><p><a class="radar-link" href="https://www.wsj.com/world/middle-east/iran-ballistic-missile-production-5538af12?st=j4RMrt&reflink=desktopwebshare_permalink" style="color: #214a86; font-size: 1em; font-weight: bold; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;" target="_blank">The Wall Street Journal</a> <em style="font-size: 0.8em;">(Gift Link)</em></p><p class="bodytext-radar" style="font-size: 1em; font-family: Georgia, serif; color: #555555; line-height: 1.7; margin: 0;">Iran has resumed its production of ballistic missiles using stockpiled components and working in underground facilities, officials from the U.S. and Middle East familiar with the matter said, eroding what the U.S. and Israel have touted as a major achievement of the war. </p></td></tr><tr><td><hr style="border: none; border-top: 1px solid #dddddd; margin: 1.6em 0;"></td></tr><tr><td align="left"><h2 style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.1em; color: #222222; font-weight: bold; margin: 0;">Operational F-15EXs Drop Live Bombs for the First Time</h2><p><a class="radar-link" href="https://www.twz.com/air/operational-f-15exs-drop-live-bombs-for-the-first-time" style="color: #214a86; font-size: 1em; font-weight: bold; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;" target="_blank">The War Zone</a> </p><p class="bodytext-radar" style="font-size: 1em; font-family: Georgia, serif; color: #555555; line-height: 1.7; margin: 0;">The Oregon Air National Guard’s 142nd Wing has taken another significant step toward turning the F-15EX Eagle II into a true multirole fighter, conducting the first live-bomb drops from operational F-15EXs during training at Nellis Air Force Base, Nev.</p></td></tr><tr><td><hr style="border: none; border-top: 1px solid #dddddd; margin: 1.6em 0;"></td></tr><tr><td align="left"><h2 style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.1em; color: #222222; font-weight: bold; margin: 0;">Iran-Backed Houthi Rebels Take Strategic Port City in Yemen, Raising Threat to Red Sea Shipping</h2><p><a class="radar-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/yemen-iran-houthi-rebels-red-sea-mokha-e4e799701b382799a955969c212800ea" style="color: #214a86; font-size: 1em; font-weight: bold; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;" target="_blank">The Associated Press</a> </p><p class="bodytext-radar" style="font-size: 1em; font-family: Georgia, serif; color: #555555; line-height: 1.7; margin: 0;">The Iran-backed Houthi rebel group on Sept. 10 took over Yemen’s port city of Mokha, an area vital to controlling shipping through the Red Sea, Houthi and Yemeni officials said. The takeover gives Iran another potential point of leverage in its war with the U.S., analysts said, if the Houthis use their presence in Mokha to ramp up threats or attacks on shipping in the Red Sea.</p></td></tr><tr><td><hr style="border: none; border-top: 1px solid #dddddd; margin: 1.6em 0;"></td></tr><tr><td align="left"><h2 style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.1em; color: #222222; font-weight: bold; margin: 0;">US Military Takes Lighter Touch Toward New Targets in Boat Strike Campaign</h2><p><a class="radar-link" href="https://thehill.com/policy/defense/6082785-us-military-targets-refueling-vessels-drug-fight/" style="color: #214a86; font-size: 1em; font-weight: bold; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;" target="_blank">The Hill</a> </p><p class="bodytext-radar" style="font-size: 1em; font-family: Georgia, serif; color: #555555; line-height: 1.7; margin: 0;">In six instances of going after these larger refueling vessels off the coast of Ecuador, U.S. Southern Command—which oversees U.S. military operations in Central and Latin America—has reported no deaths of those on board. </p></td></tr><tr><td><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="dark-block" style="margin: 1em 0; background: #F4F5F9;" valign="top" width="100%"><tbody><tr class="row-spacer" height="25"><td style="background: #1f2a39; border-color: #1f2a39; border-top-right-radius: 9px; border-top-left-radius: 9px;"> </td></tr><tr><td style="background: #1f2a39;" align="center"><table width="90%" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><tbody><tr><td align="left"><h3 style="font-size: 1em; color: #dddddd; margin: 0; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0.8em; font-weight: normal">One More Thing</h3><h2 style="font-size: 1em; color: #eeeeee; margin: 0; font-family: Georgia, serif; letter-spacing: 0.01em;">One of 9/11’s Youngest Survivors Recalls Pentagon Attack—and How She’s Now Running 2,977 Miles to Remember Those Killed</h2><p class="bodytext-radar"><a style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 1em; color: #dddddd; font-weight: bold; letter-spacing: 0.03em; text-decoration: underline #bbbbbb solid;" href="https://nypost.com/2026/09/10/us-news/air-force-captain-hanna-born-running-2977-miles-for-9-11-victims/" target="_blank">New York Post</a> </p><p class="bodytext-radar" style="font-size: 1em; font-family: Georgia, serif; margin: 0; color: #eeeeee; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: 0.01em;">She’s on a journey to make sure no one forgets. A 27-year-old Air Force Captain who recalls crying out for her “Daddy” after Soldiers rescued her from the Pentagon’s day care center on Sept. 11, 2001 is honoring the 2,977 people killed that day by running a mile for each life lost.</p></td></tr></tbody></table></td></tr><tr class="row-spacer" height="25"><td style="background: #1f2a39; border-color: #1f2a39; border-bottom-left-radius: 9px; border-bottom-right-radius: 9px;"> </td></tr></tbody></table></td></tr></tbody></table></td></tr><tr><td align="center"><a href="https://www.rtx.com/news?path=/news/campaigns/afa/&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_source=airandspaceforces&utm_campaign=rtx-brand&utm_content=perspective-F35-bank_AFA" target="_blank"><img width="680" height="265" style="margin: 0.8em 0;" src="https://www.airandspaceforces.com/app/uploads/2026/08/RTX_Perspective_F35_Banking_680x265.jpg"></a></td></tr><tr><td align="center" style="padding: 1.1em 0 1em; text-align: center; background: #2d3d44;"><table width="100%" cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 border=0><tbody><tr class="footer-logo"><td align="center"><img width="171" style="margin-bottom: 0.8em;" src="https://www.airandspaceforces.com/Image/ASF_mag_logo_white.png"></td></tr><tr class="footer-nav"><td align="center" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: 0.9em;"><a href="https://www.airandspaceforces.com/daily-report/?src=dr" style="font-size: 0.9em; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #fff; text-decoration: none; font-weight: bold;" target="_blank">Daily Report</a> | <a href="https://www.airandspaceforces.com/contact-us/?src=dr" style="font-size: 0.9em; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #fff; text-decoration: none; font-weight: bold;" target="_blank">Contact Us</a> | <a href="https://www.airandspaceforces.com/advertise/?src=dr" style="font-size: 0.9em; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #fff; text-decoration: none; font-weight: bold;" target="_blank">Advertise</a> | <a href="https://www.afa.org/join/?src=dr" style="font-size: 0.9em; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #fff; text-decoration: none; font-weight: bold;" target="_blank">Join AFA</a> | <a href="https://www.afa.org/?src=dr" style="font-size: 0.9em; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #fff; text-decoration: none; font-weight: bold;" target="_blank">Air & Space Forces Association</a> | <a href="https://www.airandspaceforces.com/reprint-permission/?src=dr" style="font-size: 0.9em; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #fff; text-decoration: none; font-weight: bold;" target="_blank">Reprints</a></td></tr></tbody></table></td></tr><tr><td align="center"><p style="margin: 0.8em 0 0;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/ASForcesMag" target="_blank"><img src="https://cdn2.iconfinder.com/data/icons/social-icons-33/128/Facebook-512.png" width="33"></a> <a href="https://twitter.com/ASForcesMag" target="_blank"><img src="https://cdn0.iconfinder.com/data/icons/social-network-7/50/4-512.png" width="35"></a></p></td></tr><tr class="footer-small"><td align="center"><p style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #555555; font-size: 0.6em; margin: 0.8em 0">Published by the Air & Space Forces Association.<br/><a href="https://www.airandspaceforces.com/?src=dr" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #214a86; font-size: 1em;" target="_blank">airandspaceforces.com</a> material is under copyright by the Air & Space Forces Association. 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Plaintext Version Air & Space Forces Magazine Daily Report for Sept. 11, 2026 View in your Web Browser: https://www.airandspaceforces.com/daily-report/20260911/?src=dr Edited by Greg Hadley with Stephen Losey, Tobias Naegele and Todd South -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [ Advertisement ] https://www.rolls-royce.com/products-and-services/defence/the-ae-engine-story.aspx?utm_source=campaign-monitor&utm_medium=advertising&utm_campaign=afaasc26_afadaily_em&utm_content=readiness_engine -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- F-16s That Defended Capital on 9/11 Preserved for History By Tobias Naegele Three F-16s that flew in defense of Washington, D.C., on Sept. 11, 2001, will be retired and preserved as museum artifacts. https://www.airandspaceforces.com/f-16s-defended-capital-9-11-preserved/?src=dr -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- USAF’s Only Aerial Spray Unit Squeezed by Demand, Aging Equipment, Slow Modernization By Todd South Over the past few months and peaking in August, crews with the 910th Airlift Wing out of Youngstown Air Reserve Station, Ohio, have been running nighttime, low-flying missions to kill a ubiquitous and deadly adversary that’s plagued Americans for centuries—mosquitoes. https://www.airandspaceforces.com/usaf-only-aerial-spray-unit-high-demand-aging-equipment/?src=dr -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [ Advertisement ] https://www.rise8.us/clp/guarantee?utm_source=afa&utm_medium=Partner&utm_campaign=51741075-AFA%20Cyber%202026&utm_content=newsletter-banner -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Space Force Taps Texas Site for New Deep Space Radar, Targets Operations in 2030 By Greg Hadley The Space Force has selected a site in north Texas as the preferred location for the final site of its new Deep Space Advanced Radar Capability, the service announced Sept. 9. https://www.airandspaceforces.com/space-force-texas-site-new-deep-space-radar/?src=dr -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Global Strike ‘Campaign’ Aims to Speed Up B-1, B-52 Maintenance, Parts Supply By Stephen Losey One year into a new campaign to boost readiness rates for the B-1B Lancer and B-52H Stratofortress bombers, Air Force Global Strike Command is claiming some early wins and planning to forge ahead with more improvements. https://www.airandspaceforces.com/global-strike-campaign-b-1-b-52-maintenance-parts-supply/?src=dr -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [ Advertisement ] https://www.marvintest.com/landing/smartcan3 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- AETC Launches Blueprint with AI Training for All Airmen By Todd South Strategic guidance from the command in charge of Air Force training lays out a plan to train all Airmen in artificial intelligence and build “Digital Airmen” across the force’s training and education enterprise. https://www.airandspaceforces.com/aetc-blueprint-ai-training-all-airmen/?src=dr -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [ Advertisement ] https://armynavy.usaaevents.com -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Radar Sweep -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Air Force Tunes Up Quantum Navigation for a Fight Without GPS To prepare for a no-GPS sky, a Pentagon test flight last month over Alaska made a major leap toward how the U.S. military plans to fly to and from targets without the satellite system, overseen by the Pentagon’s newest technology unit. https://taskandpurpose.com/news/air-force-quantum-navigation-gps/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- With Reconciliation Uncertain, Pentagon Eyeing Plan to Retool FY27 Priorities with Congress If Congress does not pass the full $350 billion reconciliation funding requested by the Pentagon, the department is prepared to work with lawmakers to figure out how to shuffle key priorities into the base budget, the department’s comptroller Jules Hurst told Breaking Defense on Sept. 10. https://breakingdefense.com/2026/09/with-reconciliation-uncertain-pentagon-eyeing-plan-to-retool-fy27-priorities-with-congress/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Zamir Says IDF to Open New ‘Unmanned Systems and AI’ Branch by December IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir announced on Sept. 8 that the military would soon inaugurate a new “unmanned systems and artificial intelligence” branch. Currently, the Israel Defense Forces has three branches — the Ground Forces, Air Force, and Navy. The existing branches are each headed by a major general. A new fourth branch would be an unprecedented move for the military. https://www.timesofisrael.com/zamir-says-idf-to-open-new-unmanned-systems-and-ai-branch-by-december/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Top Air and Space Force Leaders Will Gather amid Unresolved Iran War, Budget Uncertainty Just three days after top military leaders left the Air and Space Force Association’s February conference in Colorado, the U.S. and Israel struck Iran, commencing Operation Epic Fury. Now, more than six months later, service officials are scheduled to gather again outside Washington, D.C. to pitch their top budget priorities as the unresolved war wages on. https://www.defenseone.com/policy/2026/09/top-air-and-space-force-leaders-will-gather-amid-unresolved-iran-war-budget-uncertainty/415913/?oref=d1-featured-river-secondary -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- DOD Cyber Strategy Aims for ‘Something Big, Something Muscular’ in Offensive Ops The forthcoming Pentagon cyber strategy will focus on delivering “big outcomes” for the defense secretary and President Donald Trump in the way of offensive actions, according to a top cyber official. https://breakingdefense.com/2026/09/dod-cyber-strategy-aims-for-something-big-something-muscular-in-offensive-ops/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [ Advertisement ] https://www.uav.com/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Decades of Delayed Maintenance Has Left Pentagon Networks in ‘Potential Peril’ for the AI Age, Cyber Defense Commander Says: ‘No More.’ The top general in charge of securing and defending the Pentagon’s cyber infrastructure said Sept. 10 that decades of delayed maintenance has left DOD networks increasingly vulnerable in the AI age, adding to the drumbeat of warnings across the field about agent-instigated hacks. https://defensescoop.com/2026/09/10/delayed-maintenance-left-pentagon-networks-in-potential-peril-for-ai-age/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Iran Is Producing Ballistic Missiles Again Iran has resumed its production of ballistic missiles using stockpiled components and working in underground facilities, officials from the U.S. and Middle East familiar with the matter said, eroding what the U.S. and Israel have touted as a major achievement of the war. https://www.wsj.com/world/middle-east/iran-ballistic-missile-production-5538af12?st=j4RMrt&reflink=desktopwebshare_permalink (Gift Link) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Operational F-15EXs Drop Live Bombs for the First Time The Oregon Air National Guard’s 142nd Wing has taken another significant step toward turning the F-15EX Eagle II into a true multirole fighter, conducting the first live-bomb drops from operational F-15EXs during training at Nellis Air Force Base, Nev. https://www.twz.com/air/operational-f-15exs-drop-live-bombs-for-the-first-time -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Iran-Backed Houthi Rebels Take Strategic Port City in Yemen, Raising Threat to Red Sea Shipping The Iran-backed Houthi rebel group on Sept. 10 took over Yemen’s port city of Mokha, an area vital to controlling shipping through the Red Sea, Houthi and Yemeni officials said. The takeover gives Iran another potential point of leverage in its war with the U.S., analysts said, if the Houthis use their presence in Mokha to ramp up threats or attacks on shipping in the Red Sea. https://apnews.com/article/yemen-iran-houthi-rebels-red-sea-mokha-e4e799701b382799a955969c212800ea -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- US Military Takes Lighter Touch Toward New Targets in Boat Strike Campaign In six instances of going after these larger refueling vessels off the coast of Ecuador, U.S. Southern Command—which oversees U.S. military operations in Central and Latin America—has reported no deaths of those on board. https://thehill.com/policy/defense/6082785-us-military-targets-refueling-vessels-drug-fight/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- One More Thing... One of 9/11’s Youngest Survivors Recalls Pentagon Attack—and How She’s Now Running 2,977 Miles to Remember Those Killed She’s on a journey to make sure no one forgets. A 27-year-old Air Force Captain who recalls crying out for her “Daddy” after Soldiers rescued her from the Pentagon’s day care center on Sept. 11, 2001 is honoring the 2,977 people killed that day by running a mile for each life lost. https://nypost.com/2026/09/10/us-news/air-force-captain-hanna-born-running-2977-miles-for-9-11-victims/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [ Advertisement ] https://www.rtx.com/news?path=/news/campaigns/afa/&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_source=airandspaceforces&utm_campaign=rtx-brand&utm_content=perspective-F35-bank_AFA -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- - Daily Report: https://www.airandspaceforces.com/daily-report/ - Contact Us: https://www.airandspaceforces.com/contact-us/ - Advertise With Us: https://www.airandspaceforces.com/advertise/ - Purchase/Reprint: https://www.airandspaceforces.com/reprint-permission/ - Air & Space Forces Assoc.: https://www.afa.org - Join AFA: https://www.afa.org/join/ - A&SF Mag on Facebook: https://facebook.com/ASForcesMag - A&SF Mag on Twitter: https://twitter.com/ASForcesMag -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Published by the Air & Space Forces Association All airandspaceforces.com material is under copyright of the Air & Space Forces Association. 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