Ideas
How the US Air Force Made Its ISR Network Cheaper to Run and Easier to Upgrade
Real-world lessons from a leader of the three-year effort to convert DCGS to open architecture.
Threats
The US Air War in Afghanistan Is Nearing Surge-Era Intensity
The latest figures from Air Force Central Command show that more bombs are being dropped than have been in nearly seven years.
Threats
Could North Korea Shoot Down US Warplanes?
Some of Pyongyang's surface-to-air missiles are old, but its newer ones could threaten American aircraft.
Science & Tech
Meet the 17-Year-Old Who Hacked the Air Force
The winner of the service's latest bug-bounty contest says government security gets tighter every time they invite the public to help.
Business
Air Force: We’re Low on Bombs Because Congress Can’t Pass a Budget
It’s hard to persuade arms makers to boost production, even to fight ISIS, without cash on the barrelhead.
Science & Tech
The Russians Just Test-Fired an ICBM
Both Washington and Moscow are modernizing their nuclear arsenals, but military leaders worry that Russia is ahead.
Science & Tech
Defense Firms to Air Force: Want Your Planes’ Data? Pay Up
It may be years before Air Force leaders can scrounge up the funds to turn on diagnostic gear they already own.
Science & Tech
Syria is a ‘Laboratory’ for the Air War of the Future
U.S. airmen are rapidly developing and remixing new technologies and techniques in the fight against ISIS, but sometimes you can’t beat the tried and true.
Threats
Swarmed With Mosquitoes After Harvey, Texas Calls in the Air Force
The Air Force is spraying a controversial insecticide across 6 million acres to kill mosquitoes brought in by Hurricane Harvey.
Business
Searching for $1 Billion: Inside the Pentagon’s Struggle to Match Trump’s Air Force One Boast
Details emerge about Boeing’s cost-saving pitches at Mar-a-Lago, and what Air Force leaders are really planning to cut. First to go: aerial refueling.
Business
US Air Force Hires Two Firms to Start Developing America's Next ICBM
Boeing and Northrop Grumman have each received deals to start developing a replacement for the Minuteman III.
Science & Tech
17-Year-Old Hacks US Air Force For The Biggest Bug Bounty
The Defense Department’s third vulnerability-finding contest invited international participants to attack USAF websites. They found the most bugs yet.
Policy
Does the US Military Need a Space Corps?
A proposal in Congress would create the first new uniformed service in 70 years, but it faces opposition from the Pentagon.
Business
Here Are the Jets That May Become Air Force One
The USAF has a deal in the works to turn a pair of Boeing 747 jetliners abandoned by a bankrupt Russian airline into the next presidential transport. Here’s what they look like.
Business
Trump Wanted a Cheaper Air Force One. So the USAF Is Buying a Bankrupt Russian Firm’s Undelivered 747s
The service is reportedly getting a good deal on the jets, which list for around $390 million and are now sitting in the Mojave Desert.
Ideas
The US Air Force Needs More Bombers Than It's Asking For
The only problem with the B-21 Raider acquisition strategy is that the minimum purchase should be 164 of the stealthy jets, not 100.
Science & Tech
US Air Force Wants Robots Watching Twitter
Tomorrow’s operations will be shaped by automated analysis of the world’s open-source data, says the service’s chief of staff.
Ideas