Air Force Magazine

China is expanding the arsenal of counter-space weapons it could use in a potential conflict with the U.S., to include on-orbit systems, according to a new report from the Defense Intelligence Agency. The DIA released the third edition of its “Challenges to Security in Space” report Oct. 26, following on 2022 and 2019 versions. Among its findings, it noted that China “is developing space-based technology, including on-orbit counterspace weapons, capable of holding space systems at risk.” S

Squadrons of F-22 Raptors and F-15C Eagles have arrived at Kadena Air Base, Japan, for temporary deployments as the critical Pacific base awaits its permanent F-15EX fighters. Stars & Stripes reported Oct. 27 that a squadron of F-22s from Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, finished arriving Sept. 30. Another squadron of F-15s, from Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base New Orleans, La., also recently arrived, Stripes reported, citing a statement from the 18th Wing at Kadena. The 1

United Launch Alliance’s Vulcan rocket—sidelined since February after an anomaly—is scheduled to return to flight Nov. 13 to launch a batch of satellites for Amazon’s high-speed internet constellation in low-Earth orbit. ULA revealed Vulcan’s highly anticipated return date Oct. 28, saying the launch vehicle will fly a redesigned solid rocket booster nozzle that it hopes will correct the issue that caused a Feb. 12 mishap, which the company characterized as a “significant performance anomaly.”

At a high-profile meeting of defense ministers in the Philippines this week, U.S. and Japan leaders finalized an agreement to establish a production facility in Japan for the AIM-120 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile, following a massive $20.7 billion Pentagon contract to expand production of the missile over the next seven years. Japanese Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi announced the agreement in an Oct. 28 press conference after meeting with U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth a

More than three dozen former Airmen are running for Congress, including Democrats, Republicans, third-party and independent candidates, Air & Space Forces Magazine has found. The diverse group includes both former officers and enlisted members whose service spanned the Active, Guard, and Reserve components. They include sitting members as well as newcomers to politics. Meanwhile, some of Congress’ highest-profile veterans are departing the legislature. They include Rep. Don Baco

The Pentagon plans to issue a $150 million loan to Stoke Space Technologies, an emerging space launch provider, to help it expand its footprint at Cape Canaveral Space Force Base, Fla. The Defense Department announced the plan Oct. 26. The loan, managed by DOD’s Office of Strategic Capital, is contingent on Stoke clearing various financial, legal, and technical requirements. “The proposed loan from OSC, alongside private capital, would support the buildout of the company’s second lau

The Air Force has awarded Castelion, a venture capital-backed defense startup founded in 2022, a contract to integrate its hypersonic Blackbeard missile onto the F-16 Fighting Falcon. The announcement, which came from the company via social media on Oct. 26, marks a major advancement in the Air Force’s work on hypersonic munitions. Neither the Air Force Research Laboratory, which awarded the contract, nor Castelion immediately responded to a request for comment. The same day, the servic

Fresh off Boeing’s victory in the competition to build the Navy’s sixth-generation F/A-XX fighter, CEO Kelly Ortberg on Oct. 27 expressed confidence that the darkest days of the company’s beleaguered defense sector are in the past. A year ago, Boeing expected its Defense, Space, and Security division to see revenue growth in the low single digits, Ortberg told investors in an earnings call. Now, the company is projecting defense revenue growth in at least the mid-single digits or higher. 

The Air Force awarded Lockheed Martin a $694 million contract to produce its first-ever hypersonic missile, the Air-Launched Rapid Response Weapon, the service announced Oct. 26. The decision advances ARRW from testing into production, a major milestone for a long-sought capability. The Air Force, citing operational security concerns, withheld details on how many it ordered or when they must be delivered. Budget documents describe ARRW as a standoff weapon and “a lethal capability against

For years now, Space Force officials have said the service is getting serious about defining its role and crafting an architecture for future cislunar capabilities. Now, the Space Force is taking steps to realize that vision, asking industry to rapidly invest and develop satellites and software that could be ready for operations as soon as 2029. Maj. Gen. Stephen Purdy—the Space Force’s portfolio acquisition executive for advanced programs—said he’s seen the Pentagon’s posture toward cislunar

The Air Force unit tasked with training Tactical Air Control Party Airmen has halted all rope training events after one of its instructors was killed Oct. 17 in a rappelling demonstration in front of thousands of spectators at a college football game. Tech. Sgt. Ian Patterson of the 6th Combat Training Squadron, Detachment 2 at Joint Base San Antonio, Texas, died Oct. 17 from injuries he suffered from rappelling rapidly from the 180-foot ceiling of Alamodome, failing to stop before his body c

The Air Force is taking the first steps to build a $1 billion campus including hangars, laboratories, maintenance and training facilities, and more to test the F-47 at Nellis Air Force Base, Nev.—and the service plans to finish construction by 2031 as it moves quickly to field the upcoming sixth-generation fighter. In a presolicitation notice posted Oct. 22, the Air Force said it is looking for as many as four qualified firms that can quickly work on a project to design and build the proposed

The Air Force Research Laboratory wants industry to advance concepts for affordable hypersonic munition engines to prototype demonstrations within three to four years. AFRL released a request for information early this month, seeking white papers on technical requirements by Nov. 16. The notice is one of the first updates in months on its push for affordable rocket engines for hypersonic munitions. The Hermes Rocket Lab effort began in 2020 under AFRL’s Rocket Propulsion Division with a Br

The top Air Force commander on the Japanese island of Okinawa has clamped down alcohol and issued a curfew for junior enlisted Airmen and Guardians at Kadena Air Base for the next month. The order came roughly two weeks after a U.S. Marine was arrested for allegedly robbing and murdering a Japanese woman on the island. Brig. Gen. John B. Gallemore, commander of the 18th Wing at Kadena, issued the Oct. 22 memo, ordering the “Curtailment of Liberty and the Consumption of Alcohol,” accordi

The Air Force Office of Special Investigations is looking for a few good Airmen to swap jobs and become special agents. No, they won’t get the 007 James Bond code—but they could learn to conduct counterintelligence and investigate procurement fraud and major crimes, OSI spokesperson Trevor Saylor told Air & Space Forces Magazine. The office is looking to recruit agents from backgrounds other than law enforcement—it’s seeking Airmen with less than 11 years in service, with some exceptio

After decades of building isolated, vendor-locked systems to run the Air Operations Centers that serve as the Air Force’s “combat brains,” the program office tasked with creating the next-generation AOC is working to fold those systems into a new cloud-based system. Col. Brian Viola, the newly appointed commander of Kessel Run, the government-led, vendor-managed program office underneath the portfolio acquisition executive for command, control, communications, and battle management, told Air

The Air Force’s future strategy for fighting wars could include arming bombers with air-to-air strike capabilities, the service said in a new report to Congress. The report, titled “Long-Term USAF Fighter Force Structure” and submitted to lawmakers Oct. 16, said that “developing air-to-air capabilities on bombers” is being considered as a way to expand the service’s combat capabilities. In the report, which was briefed to reporters Oct. 20 and obtained by Air & Space Forces Magazine, t

The Pentagon has concluded a new agreement to buy laser-guidance kits that turn rockets into drone-killing weapons.  BAE Systems and the Defense Department announced a framework deal of up to seven years for 25,000 Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System guidance kits annually for the U.S. military. Another 10,000 kits could be produced each year for international customers, who are increasingly interested in the system. APKWS is a laser-guidance kit that converts 2.75-inch ungu

U.S. Northern Command and multiple research organizations just wrapped up a joint, three-year experiment to test new radar technology that could enable the Northern Warning System to detect incoming threats at longer ranges across Alaska and northern Canada. The Sept. 7-14 test event marked the conclusion of live-fly testing in the experiment series, which explored how existing radar infrastructure and emerging technology could complement current surveillance capabilities, according to an Oct

The Space Force has selected six commercial space domain awareness companies to support military operations with both steady-state and surge capacity, as part of the service’s new Commercial Augmentation Space Reserve.  Officials have been working since 2022 to establish a fleet of commercial satellites and other assets to provide capabilities like satellite imagery, space domain awareness, and communications during peacetime that can be surged on demand. The concept is not unlike the Air For