Allvin’s Retirement Casts Shadow on ‘Re-Optimization’ With his Aug. 18 announcement that he would retire this fall, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David Allvin ended months of speculation about his future and marked his tenure as among the shortest...
Frank Kendall
Growing up, Troy Meink wanted to be a pilot, then an astronaut. He joined the Air Force, but his eyesight wasn't up to pilot standards, and the pilot dream was dashed. He began as a navigator, shifted into acquisition and space. He built airplanes in ...
S ixteen retired four-star generals joined Air & Space Forces leadership in a joint letter to Congress advocating for greater investment in F-35 fighters in fiscal 2026 and to fund the E-7 Wedgetail as an essential successor to the E-3...
As futuristic aviation programs gain priority, the F-35—the only in-production, fifth-generation American fighter—is facing new headwinds. Fresh debate over its challenges and its potential in the coming months will shape its future role in the force. The House’s $150 billion...
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's move to halve the office of the Director of Operational Test and Evaluation and slash away three-quarters of its funding could push a lot of expertise out of the Pentagon, diminishing the clout and value of the organization as a truth-teller ...
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 ...
News coming out of the White House since President Donald J. Trump’s inauguration Jan. 20 is striking in its velocity. The subjects of his Executive Orders and policy memos were unsurprising, fulfilling oft-repeated campaign promises, but the speed, volume, and details—or lack of them—caught everyone ...
Creating the Space Force to counter China and Russia answered a rising threat. Now investments are needed to ensure space superiority. The first Space Race began in October 1957 with the Soviet Union’s successful launch of Sputnik, the first man-made...
Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall doesn’t see great value in trying to break the Sentinel ICBM program off as a separate budget item the way the Navy has with its ballistic-missile submarine program, saying such a move wouldn’t create any new money for the Air ...
Pete Hegseth vowed to review plans for the future of the Air Force during a contentious three-and-half-hour confirmation hearing Jan. 14 on his nomination to serve as the next Secretary of Defense. Perhaps the most significant Air Force decision Hegseth will face, if he is confirmed ...
Much more Space Force enabling all aspects of the Joint force, but perhaps still crewed fighters and stealthy transports are among the forecasts outgoing Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall made in a new report to Congress.
Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall, on the verge of leaving the Pentagon, said he would accelerate production of the B-21 bomber if there was money to do so. But even so, it couldn’t happen right away, he said in an interview with Air & Space ...
