Air Force release
Brig. Gen. Charles E. McGee, one of the original Tuskegee Airmen and Air Force legend, was laid to rest at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington June 17. Along with his family and distinguished guests, many senior military leaders attended the service to bid a final farewell to the historic figure. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Army Gen. Mark A. Milley, Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall, and Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. CQ Brown, Jr. all participated in the service.
Flight Global
Jordan is to receive eight new-build Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 fighters after signing an agreement with the manufacturer. The Middle Eastern country sealed the acquisition by signing a letter of offer and acceptance for the new-build aircraft, says Lockheed. The fighters will be produced on Lockheed’s new F-16 line in Greenville, South Carolina. Lockheed did not provide a value for the deal, or state when the fighters will be delivered.
SpaceNews
Soon after a pair of Chinese satellites reached geostationary orbit early this year, space surveillance satellite USA 270 maneuvered to get a closer look at its new neighbors. As USA 270 closed in on Shiyan-12-01 and Shiyan-12-02, the Chinese inspection satellites took off in opposite directions with Shiyan 12 02 moving into position to get a sunlit view of the U.S. surveillance satellite. “It’s pretty clear that as USA 270 gets close, these guys are getting out of Dodge,” said Dan Oltrogge, COMSPOC Corp. research director.
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Reuters
Israel is building a U.S.-sponsored regional air defense alliance, the Israeli defense minister said June 20, adding that the apparatus has already foiled attempted Iranian attacks and could be boosted by President Joe Biden's visit next month. Drawing closer in recent years to U.S.-aligned Arab states which share its Iran concerns, Israel has offered them defense cooperation. They have been publicly reticent on the idea.
Defense News
U.S. lawmakers are pushing for more money to support the Pentagon’s Joint All-Domain Command and Control endeavor and the creation of a related headquarters in the Indo-Pacific, as well as for critical technology including microelectronics and hypersonics. The provisions were included in the Senate Armed Services Committee’s version of the fiscal year 2023 defense policy bill, according to a 30-page summary released June 16.
Task & Purpose
While Americans everywhere are feeling the strain of inflation, military families are also facing challenges unique to a job that maintains a rigid pay scale and leaves you little choice but to move where and when they say so. Americans everywhere have seen the costs of gasoline, food, and housing skyrocket in recent months and military service members are no exception. In many ways, inflation is exacerbating an already concerning trend of service members—particularly younger troops—being unable to feed their families since their pay hasn’t kept pace with inflation.
Defense One
“It’s a military pilot’s nightmare: you arrive for your airborne refueling but no one’s there—just empty sky above the ocean that will soon swallow your fuel-dry aircraft. That’s the situation U.S. pilots are likely to face in a conflict against China unless the Pentagon quickly makes some changes in its investment priorities and operational concepts,” writes Timothy A. Walton, a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute’s Center for Defense Concepts and Technology.
Breaking Defense
Boeing’s KC-46 tanker has seen a new surge of interest amid the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and the company expects to announce a new international customer for the aircraft as early as the end of 2022, a Boeing official said. All told, the company expects to sell up to 42 KC-46 tankers in addition to its current backlog, said Mike Hafer, Boeing’s senior manager for KC-46 business development.
Breaking Defense
Both the US Navy and Air Force have been struggling to keep some planes ready to fly in recent years, and it’s only getting worse, according to a new watchdog report. “Mission capable rates—a metric used to assess the health and readiness of an aircraft fleet—and other related maintenance metrics trends have worsened since fiscal year 2015 for eight selected aircraft,” the Government Accountability Office wrote in a report.
One More Thing
Military.com
A new Target military discount for the 4th of July will give veterans, active-duty, and Guard and Reserve service members and their direct family members a 10 percent discount on most products. This is Target's second annual military discount. The retailer also offers a 10 percent Veterans Day military discount.
