F-16 fighter jets hurtle pilots through the sky at up to 2,000 kilometers per hour (1,243 miles per hour). In tight turns or sudden climbs, gravity is pressing so hard on their bodies that some of them might even pass out. Speaking at the Paris Air Show this week, the world’s top aerospace trade show, U.S. Air Force Capt. David “Spicy” Brown, an F-16 pilot, said training takes about a year for American military pilots. It’s not clear how long it will take Ukrainian pilots to learn to fly the aircraft.
Corrosion from seawater. Missiles that lack an updated security system. A confusing reporting and evaluation structure that uses different metrics for assessing unit and equipment readiness. These are some of the problems the Government Accountability Office found during a recent review of the U.S. missile defense system. Ranging from coast to coast and far abroad, the study painted an alarming picture of America's ability to defend itself from missile attacks and concluded that fixes are needed to address the problems.
At the far end of the tarmac at the Paris Air Show, two gray aerial refueling tankers are parked within eyeshot of one another—prelude, perhaps, to going head-to-head for a double-digit order from the U.S. Air Force. On one side of the ramp, a Boeing KC-46 is among a handful of U.S. military jets. Across the way, an Airbus A330 multi-role tanker transport is surrounded by other military aircraft. The two planes, each based on commercial airliners, are expected to compete as the U.S. Air Force looks to replace dozens of 60-plus-year old KC-135s.
The way modern Airmen and Guardians prepare for the future fight is changing, with live, virtual, and constructive training offering new ways to practice essential skills. Learn more about how virtual and augmented reality, simulated environments, and other technologies are helping train warfighters everywhere from the cockpit to the maintenance depot.
A coalition of Western countries is eyeing Romania as a possible location to train Ukrainian pilots to fly F-16 fighter jets, according to three people with knowledge of the planning, indicating that NATO countries are moving closer to starting a program that could see the warplanes above Ukrainian skies within months.
The air force chiefs representing the Future Combat Air System (FCAS) partner nations took a step toward establishing a synergistic concept of air warfare on June 21, signing a joint document outlining the path ahead as the trinational program moves forward to a new phase.
The Space Security Defense Program (SSDP)—a joint Space Force and National Reconnaissance Office organization—is planning a “great power space competition event” to brainstorm the technology and techniques that will be needed for the United States to compete in future conflicts in space. The confab will bring together experts from industry, academia and government to think through challenges and what solutions—available both now and in the future—will be required, according to a solicitation posted on Sam.gov.
The House Armed Services Committee approved June 21 an amendment to the fiscal year 2024 defense policy bill that would allow the Defense Department to award cost-plus incentive-fee contracts for construction projects for the Sentinel Intercontinental Ballistic Missile program's facilities. Cost-plus contracts for Sentinel launch facilities, control centers and other infrastructure would be limited to the first two low-rate initial production lots of the ICBM under this amendment.
Lt. Col. Dan Kimmich, of Space Systems Command, speaks to Military Times about how the Space Force is using technology to abate the space junk problem.
Video has emerged depicting the moment a U.S. Air Force F-35A Lightning II fighter intercepted a Mooney M-20J single-engine airplane over San Francisco on June 20. According to an official announcement by the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), the intercept concluded without incident.