Eighteen 
Air Force transport aircraft from various USAF bases took part in June in the largest formation ever assembled for a joint forcible entry exercise held at Pope AFB, N.C., and nearby Fort Bragg. The air armada included 10 C-130s and eight C-17s that supported members of the Army’s 82nd Airborne Division in gaining operational access to denied terrain through a massive airdrop during the June 22-23 training event. In the first night alone, aircrews dropped more than 1,100 paratroopers. “When the enemy sees this, it has a tremendous effect,” said Lt. Gen. Frank Helmick, commanding general of the Army’s XVIII Airborne Corps. He added, “When you put US boots on the ground dropped by US Air Force personnel, you send one heck of a signal.” (Little Rock report by Capt. Joe Knable)
The F-47 fighter will be run differently than previous fighter programs and share the same mission systems architecture as the Collaborative Combat Aircraft, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David Allvin told the Senate Armed Services Committee. That means advances in one will fuel advances in the other.