A group of Chinese H-6K bombers recently flew near Taiwan to practice "confrontation drills", Chinese state media reported late on Oct. 26, publicizing the action just a few days before the U.S. and Chinese presidents are due to meet in South Korea.
Russia tested a new nuclear-capable and powered cruise missile fit to confound existing defenses, inching closer to deploying it to its military, President Vladimir Putin said in remarks released on Oct. 26.
China, Russia, and other adversaries can strike the U.S. through a range of air and missile technologies. In this episode, host Heather Penney discusses solutions with former NORTHCOM-NORAD commander Gen. Glen VanHerck, USAF (Ret.) and former USAFE commander Gen. Jeff “Cobra” Harrigian, USAF (Ret.); along with Mitchell Institute senior fellows Brig. Gen. Houston Cantwell, USAF (Ret.), and Col. Charles Galbreath, USSF (Ret.).
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has restored but downgraded an independent, internal Pentagon think tank focused on future wars, seven months after dismantling the agency in the name of accountability and efficiency, according to a memo obtained by The Washington Post and people familiar with the matter.
Timothy Mellon, a reclusive billionaire and a major financial backer of President Trump, is the anonymous private donor who gave $130 million to the U.S. government to help pay troops during the shutdown, according to two people familiar with the matter.
This week’s announcement that Ukraine’s Air Force (PSU) would acquire between 120 and 150 of the Swedish-made Saab JAS-39E Gripen fighters came as a shock. After all, just a month ago, Sweden’s defense minister was saying any agreement would be a “long-term” situation to work out. Still, despite the excitement around the agreement, it will take several years before Gripen is flying over Ukrainian airspace. And there are plenty of questions about what comes next.
Roughly 3,200 striking St. Louis-area Boeing workers will stay on the picket line after members rejected a modified contract proposal for a fourth time. The local IAM 837 union said its members voted down the aerospace company’s new five-year contract proposal. The company said its proposal failed by a 51%-to-49% vote. Workers at Boeing’s St. Louis-area plants help assemble jet fighters, trainer aircraft, and bomb kits.
As defense spending looks up in the U.S. and abroad, some defense firms are betting on “self-funded” prototypes. And while it’s not a new practice, there seems to be renewed emphasis with new-to-defense companies and some primes looking to preempt threats and programs of record.
A F/A-18F Super Hornet fighter jet and a MH-60R Sea Hawk helicopter assigned to the USS Nimitz aircraft carrier both crashed into the South China Sea on Oct. 26 in separate aircraft mishaps. A spokesperson for the U.S. Pacific Fleet confirmed the two crashes, saying in a statement that the mishaps happened approximately half an hour apart.
Long overlooked by Ottawa, Canada’s remote and resource-rich Arctic is suddenly at the center of a new national project—one whose potential was recognized early on by outside players, including the United States.
Organizers of RIAT, the UK’s most famous airshow, have announced that the main theme for next year’s event will be “Fighter Meet,” celebrating over a century of air-to-air combat aircraft.
