The joint U.S.-South Korea Ulchi Freedom Shield exercise will end Aug. 21, a week earlier than previously planned, at the behest of President Donald Trump—a move that comes as U.S Air Force is already reviewing its exercise schedule in the Pacific.
President Donald J. Trump
President Donald Trump said July 19 the new “bridge” Air Force One will soon receive additional modifications amid reported concerns about the state of its defensive capabilities.
The new “Bridge” Air Force One donated by Qatar made its official debut July 1, carrying President Donald Trump to North Dakota.
The U.S. military struck Iran for the second time this week, carrying out attacks on an Iranian military facility on May 27, U.S. officials said. Iran responded by firing a ballistic missile at Kuwait, which hosts Ali Al Salem Air Base.
Air Force fighters, tankers, and intelligence aircraft contributed “defensive overwatch” for the U.S. military effort to guide commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, senior officials said.
The Air Force has finished modifying and testing the new VC-25B Bridge aircraft that will serve as a temporary Air Force One, the service announced May 1. All that’s left now is to finish painting the jet before it starts flying this summer.
The dramatic and sprawling two-day operation to save the crew of an F-15E Strike Eagle shot down over Iran on April 3 involved hundreds of personnel, dozens of aircraft—and multiple close calls.
The Air Force has posthumously promoted two of the six Airmen who died in a KC-135 crash in western Iraq on March 12.
The next “Air Force One” presidential aircraft and other planes in the Air Force’s VIP transport fleet will soon have a new paint scheme—one preferred by President Trump and similar to the one painted on the president’s personal 757 aircraft.
The Air Force has a name and expected delivery date for the Boeing 747 gifted by Qatar to the United States for presidential airlift: the “VC-25 bridge aircraft” now has an anticipated delivery no later than summer 2026.
For the Air Force and Space Force, an influx of additional resources could be an opportunity to accelerate a massive modernization portfolio and ramp up aircraft and satellite production, defense analysts and former officials told Air & Space Forces Magazine.
Lawmakers in Congress are working to inject tens of billions of dollars into President Donald Trump’s ambitious “Golden Dome” plan for comprehensive missile defense of the U.S. homeland in the coming months.
