2023 USAF & USSF Almanac: Leaders

Amid NATO’s continued push to ramp up air defenses in Eastern Europe, Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall swung by seven allied countries to boost relations last week, including those on Russia’s and Ukraine’s doorstep.

The Northrop Grumman/Scaled Composites Model 437 Vanguard made its first flight Aug. 29. The rapid-prototype jet, which may be aimed at the Air Force's Collaborative Combat Aircraft Increment II program, demonstrates the maturity of the company's "digital ecosystem," Northrop said.

The Air Force lacks proper guidance and controls for getting contractors to pay it back for defective spare parts, leaving the service with millions of dollars’ worth of broken equipment and sometimes paying even more money to repair it, according to the the Department of Defense Inspector General.

The Air Force released accident investigation board reports into two CV-22 Osprey mishaps that took place in the span of five days last summer, both involving aircraft and crew from the 20th Special Operations Squadron at Cannon Air Force Base, N.M. 

Lockheed Martin is delivering F-35 Tech Refresh 3 software which will allow pilots to train on more of their jets' advanced capabilities; an improvement over those delivered just a few weeks ago. But the software is still less than it should be, and the company is having some payments withheld…

A Ukrainian Air Force pilot was killed when his F-16 fighter crashed Aug. 26, Ukraine’s military announced Aug. 29. The incident occurred during a massive Russian missile and drone attack that day that saw Ukraine’s F-16s make their combat debut. But the mission came at a high cost.

When China’s air force and coast guard engaged recently in apparently provocative actions in the East and South China Seas, most Western media framed the events as evidence of Beijing’s aggressive and potentially destabilizing behavior. While aggressive is often an apt term for People’s Liberation Army (PLA) operations, important details…

A military exercise earlier this month saw 9th Reconnaissance Wing Airmen do something completely different: command and control fighter and transport aircraft as part of a massive exercise across the western U.S.

The Air Force will soon award study contracts for prototype engines to power Collaborative Combat Aircraft. But the service insists it is leaving the door open to a wide range of options and thrust classes.