U.S. Air Force pays $148M to keep 1960s jet engine flying
The U.S. Air Force is paying close to $148.3 million to keep an engine that has powered its supersonic jet trainer since the 1960s running. The Defense Logistics Agency awarded Collins Engine Nozzles two contracts for fuel-system parts on the J85 turbojet, the engine that powers the T-38 Talon, according to Department of War contract […]
A suspected Russian drone crossed from Belarus into Lithuanian airspace this week before continuing into Russia’s Kaliningrad exclave, and a second drone following the same route the next night was shot down by an Italian fighter jet flying NATO’s Baltic Air Policing mission. Retired Polish military pilot Michał Fiszer described the episode in a post […]
Rafael Advanced Defense Systems is integrating its SPICE 1000 precision-guided munition onto the F-35 Adir fighter jet for the first time, the Israeli company announced Sept. 15, 2026, at the AFA Air, Space & Cyber conference. The work is being carried out jointly with Lockheed Martin at Lockheed’s facilities in the United States. SPICE 1000 […]
Anduril Industries has released new imagery showing weapons fit checks on its FQ-44 Fury aircraft, indicating the U.S. Air Force’s newest uncrewed fighter could carry a range of air-to-ground munitions once it enters full production. Anduril captioned the release “Fit for Fury,” adding that the notional configurations “confirm Fury’s compatibility with a range of munitions.” […]
Lockheed Martin’s Skunk Works division has finished restoring an F-117 Nighthawk stealth jet, known as Aircraft 818 and nicknamed “The Overachiever,” for permanent display at the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum. The company said the aircraft will go on exhibit at the museum’s Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center later this fall. The move adds another […]
Israeli drone maker Steadicopter has cleared a regulatory hurdle needed to expand operations of its Black Eagle 50E unmanned helicopter in the United States, the company announced Sept. 15, 2026. The aircraft completed an airworthiness validation process run by the Nevada Unmanned Aircraft Systems Test Site, based at the University of Nevada, Reno. The Nevada […]
Denmark accused a Russian warship of firing two emergency flares at one of its military helicopters over the Baltic Sea, the government said Monday, Sept. 14, 2026. The helicopter was tracking the vessel as part of what Denmark described as a routine monitoring operation when the flares were fired. The Danish government summoned the Russian […]
Diehl Defence and Elbit Systems demonstrated their SkyStriker loitering ‘kamikaze drone’ system in a live test in early September 2026, the companies announced Sept. 14. The demonstration focused on the weapon’s range and a “hand-over” function that worked at a distance of 80 km (50 miles). SkyStriker was launched from a canister, located a target, […]
German drone developer CiS has finished validation testing on a new compact launch and recovery system called the ORKA Dock Mini, the company announced Sept. 15, 2026 from Rostock, Germany. The final flight tests took place at night, ahead of the first unit’s delivery to an undisclosed naval customer. The Dock Mini is built to […]
The U.S. Air Force and Northrop Grumman have fully assembled an inert version of the Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missile at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, the company announced Sept. 14, 2026. The vertical assembly is a step toward flight testing the missile in 2027. Engineers stacked all of the missile’s stages, propulsion elements, and […]
The U.S. Air Force’s Havoc Spear cruise missile has passed a combat evaluation and is now cleared for broader use across special operations and conventional aircraft, Air Force Special Operations Command announced. The missile, officially designated the AGM-190A, was tested in a live operational setting during the spring of 2026. AFSOC ran the evaluation in […]
Lockheed Martin is building four more of its newest combat drones, the company announced September 14, doubling down on a program that’s still more than a year away from ever leaving the ground. The news came from the company’s secretive Skunk Works division, following a major Air Force conference near Washington, D.C., where Skunk Works also […]
The Massachusetts Air National Guard’s 104th Fighter Wing formally welcomed the F-35A Lightning II to Barnes Air National Guard Base on September 13, 2026, marking the aircraft’s arrival after a transition process that began more than three years ago. The ceremony drew Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey, military officials and representatives from Kenya and Paraguay, whose […]
Under heavy cloud cover, Russia fired a massive barrage of Geran-2 attack drones, the Russian-built version of Iran’s Shahed-136, at western Ukraine early Sunday. The Ukrainian General Staff said Russia launched 863 drones at Ukraine over the previous 24 hours, one of the largest barrages of the war. French open-source analyst Clément Molin wrote on […]
A long-endurance surveillance drone built by Maryland-based Platform Aerospace was spotted taking off from a Jordanian air base used by U.S. forces on September 13, 2026, according to flight-tracking data shared by an open-source intelligence account. The MenchOsint described it as the first known sighting of the aircraft, known as Vanilla, operating from Jordan. The […]
Ukraine’s Defense Forces struck a Russian chemical plant in Volgograd overnight on September 10-11, 2026, using FP-5 “Flamingo” cruise missiles, according to Fire Point, the Ukrainian company that manufactures the weapon. Fire Point said the missiles hit their target directly and sparked a large fire at the facility. The target, Volgogradpromproekt, is a specialty chemicals […]
The U.S. State Department has approved a possible $140 million sale of four UH-60L Black Hawk helicopters to Argentina, a deal that would give the Argentine Army its first Black Hawks. The approval, notified to Congress on September 10, 2026, follows through on a purchase Argentine officials confirmed earlier this year. The package includes the […]
A U.S. Air Force C-17 Globemaster III landed at Camp Davis South, part of Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune in North Carolina, marking the first time the heavy-lift aircraft has touched down there in more than 20 years. The roughly 140-ton jet, longer than half a football field, landed alongside Canadian C-130 transports to support […]
The U.S. Coast Guard held a ceremony at Air Station Sacramento, California, marking delivery of the station’s first HC-130J Super Hercules, the aircraft that will eventually replace its smaller C-27J Spartan patrol planes. Vice Adm. Joseph Buzzella, commander of U.S. Coast Guard Pacific Area, presided over the event. “This is a monumental step forward for […]
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky visited a group of Ukrainian military pilots training in Canada on September 12, 2026, ahead of their eventual transition to Western fighter jets including the F-16 and Sweden’s Gripen. Four L-39 training jets flown by Ukrainian cadets performed a flyover to greet him at the airfield. The visit took place at […]