Prototype of Iconic T-37 Trainer Makes First Flight

Oct. 12, 1954

The Cessna XT-37 Tweet trainer prototype is flown for the first time at Wichita, Kan. The T-37 will fly for more than 40 years as the Air Force’s primary trainer. (The Air Force and Navy selected a new joint primary trainer, the Raytheon T-6A Texan II, with deliveries beginning in 1999.)

Related

Space Force Budget Cuts SDA’s Data Transport Funding

April 23, 2026
The new Space Force budget request omits funding for future tranches of the Space Development Agency’s data transport layer, teeing up a potential debate in Congress about the future of the organization and the service’s plan for managing both tactical and enterprise communication needs. 

Pentagon Zeroes Out E-7 in Budget, Leaving Its Future Uncertain

April 22, 2026
The Pentagon did not include any funding for the the E-7A Wedgetail in its 2027 budget request, setting up another round in its fight with Congress over the future of the Boeing-built successor to the E-3 Sentry Airborne Early Warning and Control jet.

Pass-Through and Classified Spending: What’s Hidden in the ’27 Budget

April 22, 2026
For 2027, so-called “pass through” accounts—money that funds other agencies and is never actually touched or used by the Air Force—will top $52.3 billion. That's 13.4 percent of the total department spending plan. But proportionally, that $52.3 billion accounts for a smaller share than in past years, when it has sometimes exceeded 20 percent.  

Air Base Defense Would Get $1.4 Billion in ’27 USAF Budget

April 21, 2026
The Air Force wants to funnel $1.4 billion into air base defense with new weapon systems designed to protect homeland installations and forward-deployed airfields against drones and missile threats, Air Force budget officials said April 21.