Matthew Cox
Matthew Cox has been a defense reporter since 1998. Prior to working for three years in media relations at Thales, he worked for Military.com from 2011 to 2021, covering Army and Marine Corps readiness and modernizations with a focus on weapons development and procurement. Before that he worked for more than 12 years at Army Times. He focused on modernization, training, and readiness as well as covering light infantry units in combat in both Afghanistan from 2002 to 2008. He also spent four years in the U.S. Army during the second half of the 1980s, serving as an infantryman in the 82nd Airborne Division.
Recent stories by Matthew Cox
Combat Weather Airmen Stressed to Their Limits in Army Competition
In the small world of Air Force weather specialists, combat weather specialists are a niche unto themselves, deploying with Army ground units to provide forecasts and, if need be, fight alongside those Soldiers. For Staff Sgt. Francisco Estrada, the hardest part of the job isn’t ...
Future Airmen to Get Less Sleep, More Stress in Basic Training
The Air Force has begun depriving new trainees of more sleep and will soon ramp up the stress level in Basic Military Training to better prepare Airmen for the increased strain of combat operations such as Epic Fury.
Air Force Releases Results from Inspections of M18 Pistols
The Air Force has ruled the M18 service pistol is “safe and reliable” after inspecting more than 100,000 of the service’s 9mm pistols, according to a Sept. 2 announcement. Leaders ordered a force-wide inspection after a July 20, 2025, discharge of an M18 killed an ...
Airmen and Guardians Must Undergo Gas Mask Seal Tests as Part of Shaving Crackdown
The Department of the Air Force is giving Airman and Guardians until the end of the year to meet new requirements for ensuring they achieve a proper protective mask seal, part of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s crackdown on unauthorized facial hair.
Space Force Honor Guard Gets a New Uniform with Blue Accents
Space Force Honor Guard members recently unveiled the unit’s ceremonial service dress uniform, the latest step in the new service’s journey to create its own distinctive visual appearance.
Virtual Foundations Courses Coming for Enlisted Airmen in PME Reorg
The Air Force plans to offer virtual enlisted Foundations courses Airmen can take at their convenience as part of a larger effort to modernize enlisted professional military education, or EPME.
Air Force Inks Deal for New Dorms at Medical Training Campus
The Air Force is negotiating a potential $1.4 billion deal to replace five dormitories—reportedly suffering from mold, failing air conditioning systems, and foundational defects—that housed thousands of U.S. military medical trainees at Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston, Texas.
Air Force Wants New Family of Target Drones Ranging from Expendable to Sophisticated
The Air Force is looking for a new family of drones to serve as aerial targets for test missions, ranging from cheap, expendable quadcopters to large, reusable aircraft that can mimic fifth-generation enemy fighters.
Nellis HH-60Ws Rescue Navy Helicopter Crew in California Mountains
Search and rescue Airmen from Nellis Air Base, Nev., flew more than 200 miles in two HH-60W Jolly Green IIs last week to rescue five of their Navy helicopter crew counterparts who were forced to land in mountainous terrain near Naval Air Weapons Station China ...
DOD Leader Calls for Counter-Drone, Airborne Directed Energy Weapons
A top Pentagon tech official called on industry this week to help the military develop “lighter, more efficient” directed energy weapons designed to go on aircraft and conduct special operations missions or down drones—areas where the Air Force’s directed energy efforts have been quiet as ...
Watchdog Presses DOD to Fix Decaying Infrastructure at Pacific Air Bases
The Pentagon’s watchdog has identified serious concerns over corrosion, mold, and the structural decline of “critical infrastructure” at Air Force bases and other military installations in the Pacific, according to a recent report.
Air Force Wants a Drone Factory in a Box for Rapid, Remote Deployments
The Air Force wants to step up its ability to field unmanned systems with deployable manufacturing equipment for turning out small drones in austere terrain.
Air Force Promotes Fewer Staff Sergeants After Last Year’s Historic Surge
The Air Force is promoting around 12,500 Senior Airmen to staff sergeant, roughly 20 percent fewer enlisted Airmen compared to last year’s massive total.
New Air Force Program Ensures ACE Teams Speak the Right Language Downrange
The Air Force is now training hand-picked Airmen to translate the service’s wartime airfield needs into the native tongues of non-English speaking allies. These aren’t linguists; they’re Airmen from across the force, trained to patch bomb-damaged concrete runways or fix fighter aircraft.
Air Guard Dangles Bonuses to Boost Retention
The Air National Guard is offering $7,500 bonus to Guard members for a three-year reenlistment before the end of fiscal 2026, but time is running out.
