Daily Report

To stave off a fighter pilot exodus and reduce the growing pilot shortage, Air Force planners are considering a myriad of approaches. But they believe increasing the retention bonus could have the most immediate impact. Notably, about 800 pilots will...

As part of a multi-pronged plan to reduce the growing gap between the pilots it has and the pilots it needs, the Air Force is increasing the number of pilots it produces—a balancing act all its own. Air Force officials...

Lawmaker wishes to separate the F-35’s Block IV upgrade program from the rest of the project—stated in the 2017 National Defense Authorization Act—won’t slow things down, but it will add a lot of cost, Pentagon acquisition chief Frank Kendall said....

There’s going to be a six-month delay in the start of F-35 Initial Operational Test and Evaluation, program and Pentagon leaders said Tuesday. Pentagon acquisition chief Frank Kendall acknowledged that although “the target was the middle of 2017” to start...

The Air Force could still decide to declare initial operational capability in August with the F-35A, but with an asterisk, program director Lt. Gen. Christopher Bogdan said Tuesday. Speaking with reporters after an F-35 CEO meeting, Bogdan said USAF will...

Negotiations between the Pentagon and Lockheed Martin on Lots 9 and 10 of the F-35 program are still underway, but should be concluded “soon,” Pentagon acquisition chief Frank Kendall reported. He told reporters Tuesday the two lots are being negotiated...

A senator from Georgia has proposed an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act that would require the Air Force to speed up the JSTARS recapitalization program. The amendment, filed by Sen. David Perdue (R-Ga.), requires Secretary of Defense Ash...

US leaders are pressing China to find a peaceful resolution to disputes over the South China Sea. President Barack Obama, speaking Wednesday in Japan before the G7 summit begins on Thursday, said the tensions are focused on China’s militarization of...

C-17s and crews from JB Lewis-McChord, Wash., this month conducted a small-scale flag exercise as a “proof of concept” for Air Mobility Command’s new premier training exercise. Five C-17s and crews flew from McChord to the Mountain Home Range Complex...

More than 120 high-level Air Force officials are planning Pacific Air Forces way forward as ongoing challenges face the command’s area of operations. The inaugural PACAF Warfighter Symposium began May 23 and will wrap up Friday at JB Pearl Harbor-Hickam,...