The FAA has issued General Atomics Aeronautical Systems jet-powered Predator C an experimental certificate (EC), allowing the remotely piloted aircraft to conduct routine operations in the US National Airspace System, the company announced July 11. With avionics derived from the combat-proven Predator B, which the Air Force refers to as the MQ-9 Reaper, the C model, which General Atomics calls the Avenger, is designed to perform high-speed, long-endurance missions over land and sea, the company said from the Farnborough International Airshow in the United Kingdom. It can support a wide range of sensors and weapons up to a 2,000-pound joint direct attack munition, with a mission endurance of 15 hours. GA said it plans to start flight testing an extended-range version of the Predator C, with an expected 20-hour mission endurance, in September.
Roughly two of every five fighters in the Air Force fleet could be F-35As by 2035, according to a new fighter force structure report the service submitted to Congress on Oct. 16. Lt. Gen. David Tabor, deputy chief of staff for plans and programs, revealed the new estimate during an…