Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s first trip to Capitol Hill to argue for next year’s Pentagon budget shed new light on funding for some of the Air Force’s top-priority acquisition programs, even as the department continues to hide its 2026 request from view.
2026 budget
Over half a million troops would serve in the Air Force and Space Force in 2026, the Trump administration said last week, keeping the workforce essentially flat as Airmen and Guardians tackle a growing list of missions around the globe.
Absent a full defense budget request from the White House nearly six months into President Donald Trump’s tenure, lawmakers are taking matters into their own hands.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth will head to Capitol Hill this month to make the case for the Trump administration’s proposed defense budget, a Pentagon spokesperson said June 2.
The Air Force budget would grow to $234 billion while Space Force spending would shrink to $26 billion under the White House's yearly ask.
President Donald Trump is proposing a 13 percent increase in defense spending for fiscal 2026, growth that could mean the first ever $1 trillion defense budget, according to a document obtained by Air & Space Forces Magazine.
As the Trump administration puts the finishing touches on its 2026 defense budget, the F-35 Joint Program Office has issued a statement explaining what all is included in its $2.1 trillion, 94-year program cost estimate.
Former Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall wasn't planning to include the NGAD in the fiscal 2026 budget proposal, saying on a podcast that there were higher priorities. He and former Air Force acquisition executive Andrew Hunter also say the program is structured such that there ...
How would you implement Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s instruction for the Pentagon to find eight percent in budget cuts that can be reallocated to other priorities? Top defense analysts and experts had a wide array of answers during a recent think tank workshop.
There’s a clear consensus within the Pentagon that the Space Force needs more money to tackle its growing mission and support the joint force—but don’t go raiding the Air Force’s budget to provide it, Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall said Dec. 19.
Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David W. Allvin didn't offer certain support for the Next-Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) fighter at a June 13 Air & Space Forces Association event, saying the future air superiority platform is merely one choice among many the service will ...
