News

B-1 bomber rises from the ‘Boneyard’ to rejoin the Air Force’s fleet
After a yearslong sabbatical in the desert, a retired B-1B Lancer will soon rejoin the Air Force’s bomber fleet.

Ike aircraft carrier leaves Middle East, enters the Mediterranean Sea
The aircraft carrier Dwight D. Eisenhower is now sailing in the eastern Mediterranean Sea after operating in the Middle Eastern waters of U.S. Central Command since November.

Corps IDs Marine who died in California ‘aviation ground mishap’
Cpl. Miguel Maya, a U/AH-1 aircraft avionics technician, died “as a result of an aviation ground mishap,” the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing said Friday in a news release.

Air Force

Sierra Nevada wins $13B contract to build Air Force ‘doomsday plane’
The Department of the Air Force on Friday said it awarded Sierra Nevada Corp. a $13 billion contract to replace the service’s aging E-4B Nightwatch “doomsday planes” that would fly during a nuclear war.

So does the Air Force have new aces now?
The U.S. Air Force defines an “ace” as any pilot that has more than five combat kills. It’s been decades since American pilots reached that status, but that might have changed this month.

UK spending millions to improve road safety around US Air Force bases
The United Kingdom will spend at least $6.5 million to improve road safety near two bases hosting the U.S. Air Force.

New report: Engine problems led to MQ-9 crash in Africa last year
A U.S. Air Force MQ-9 suffered an engine failure flying over Africa in May 2023, forcing the drone’s pilot to down it in the ocean where it was not recovered, according to a new Air Force report. The cost of the mishap was more than $21 million.

Defense

Boeing buys GKN factory, ending dispute over F-15, F/A-18 parts
Boeing has agreed to buy a St. Louis-area facility from GKN Aerospace that supplies critical parts for the Boeing F-15 and F/A-18 fighter jets, a lifeline for the aerospace giant’s fighter production that also ends contentious litigation between the two parties.

Sikorsky prepares X2 offer for NATO’s next generation rotorcraft competition
The manufacturer is shifting attention to alliance requirements in the aftermath of the US Army cancelling its next-generation Future Attack Reconnaissance Aircraft (FARA) effort.

Veterans

101-year-old WWII veteran from NJ gets birthday wish to fly again
A World War II veteran who flew 32 combat missions in Europe had a wish for his 101st birthday — to fly once again in a small plane.