An F-22 Raptor flight demonstration highlighted the US military representation at the 2016 Bahrain International Airshow held this past week at Sakhir AB, Bahrain. “Coming together with our partners in the Gulf states … has been [an] excellent experience,” said Navy Lt. Jordan Dennis. “We look forward to continuing to enhance interoperability with our partners here in the Middle East,” he added in a release. The biennial event also included an F-15E Strike Eagle, deployed from the 391st Fighter Squadron at Mountain Home AFB, Idaho, and joint-service aircraft from the Army, Navy, and Marine Corps. A total of 10 US aircraft, including an F/A-18 Hornet and Super Hornet, AV-8B Harriers, MV-22 Osprey tiltrotors, as well as MH-53E, MH-60S, and CH-47 helicopters were on static display Jan. 21-23. Flight demonstration teams from several international air forces performed to nearly 30,000 spectators during the event, reported Stars and Stripes.
The rate of building B-21 bombers would speed up if the fiscal 2026 defense budget passes. But it remains unclear how much capacity would be added, and whether the Air Force would simply build the bombers faster, or buy more.
