The head of Air Mobility Command on Sept. 16 offered some new details about what went into repairing a KC-135 Stratotanker riddled with shrapnel holes from an Iranian attack.
Senior U.S. Air Force leaders in Europe say NATO allies are increasingly looking to participate in the development and employment of collaborative combat aircraft, even as several of those same countries pursue their own indigenous fighter and drone programs. American commanders say they are looking forward to CCAs expanding the alliance’s overall capacity, and are already pushing for such systems to work together from the outset.
The U.S. military’s top uniformed leader says U.S. forces must be ready for war near or possibly even on the moon, a rhetorical leap that comes as service leaders are still wrestling with the legal frameworks surrounding its newly revealed orbital weapons.
The Air Force’s portfolio acquisition executive responsible for modernizing command and control plans to create a new contract vehicle for the DAF Battle Network and other capabilities.
The Air Force has spent the last year building up a new system to defend bases from drones and missiles, testing everything from artificial intelligence-powered detection systems to electronic warfare and kinetic weapons designed to physically knock drones out of the sky. Now the service intends to dedicate airmen whose primary responsibility will be defending bases against aerial attacks.
Lt. Gen. Daniel Tulley, Air Mobility Command commander, was asked if he would be interested in restarting production of the C-17 Globemaster III heavy lift aircraft. “Heck yeah,” he said. “But with a caveat.”
U.S. Space Command does not have all the capabilities it needs to target adversary space systems in a conflict, the command’s top officer said Sept. 17. “To be able to negate threats in space, we must be able to find, fix, track, and target those threats. Targeting in the space domain is maturing, but it still has a long way to go,” SPACECOM Commander Gen. Stephen Whiting told the annual Advanced Maui Optical and Space Surveillance Technologies conference.
Saudi Arabia is running low on missile interceptors and has turned to regional and Western allies for assistance as its standoff with Houthi rebels in Yemen drags on, two regional officials said Sept. 16. The officials said the Saudis have asked France, Britain, Pakistan, and Egypt to deploy air-defense support to the region to help defend against missiles and drones fired by Houthis and other Iran-backed groups.
The House of Representatives on Sept. 16 passed an aggressive sanctions package meant to stifle Russia’s war machine, ending a year and a half of debate over the legislative effort championed by the late Sen. Lindsey Graham.
Iran vowed to respond to a U.S. blockade by pushing more trade overland. On the ground, it isn’t going according to plan. Hundreds of Iranian truck drivers are currently stuck at Iran’s border with Pakistan, unable to send their goods into Tehran’s neighbor. They say they are facing worsening bureaucratic hurdles and costs, many caused by their own government. The same thing is happening at Iran’s land borders with Turkey, Turkmenistan, and Afghanistan, dealing Tehran a self-inflicted blow and throttling trade through its few remaining economic release valves.
Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) on Sept. 15 launched an effort to impeach Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, citing the Pentagon’s military actions against Iran.
Attendees at the 2026 Air and Space Forces Association's Air, Space and Cyber Conference got an exclusive first look at a new trailer for Jimmy, a film about the life and military service of Brig. Gen. James “Jimmy” Stewart, Sept. 16. The panel featured Kelly Stewart Harcourt, Stewart’s daughter and an executive producer; Aaron Burns, the film’s director; and Lt. Gen. Andrew J. Gebara, U.S. Air Force director of staff.
