On Dec. 20, 2016, the first digitally designed, engineered, and built Boeing T-X advanced trainer recorded its first flight from St. Louis Lambert International Airport. The 55-minute sortie validated key aspects of the jet’s model-based design and demonstrated its performance. On Sept. 27, 2018, the U.S. Air Force awarded a production contract to Boeing, and a year later announced the jet would be designated the T-7A Red Hawk in honor of the Tuskegee Airmen, who flew their WWII aircraft with signature red tails. The first T-7A Red Hawk complete with its red tails rolled out April 28, 2022.
An important U.S. Air Force E-3 Sentry AWACS command and control plane was among the aircraft damaged in a March 27 Iranian missile and drone attack on Prince Sultan Air Base, Saudi Arabia, people familiar with the matter told Air & Space Forces Magazine.
