Category Archives: Aviation

U.S. Air Force Grounds 82 Two-Seat F-16Ds

U.S. Air Force Grounds 82 Two-Seat F-16Ds

A two-seat F-16 Fighting Falcon lands June 30, 2014, on Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany. USAF Photo

A two-seat F-16 Fighting Falcon lands June 30, 2014, on Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany. USAF Photo

The U.S. Air Force recently grounded 82 two-seat Lockheed Martin F-16D Fighting Falcons due to canopy sill longeron cracks that have developed between the front and rear pilot seats, according to a Tuesday statement released by the service. Read More

NAVAIR ‘On the Precipice’ of Releasing UCLASS RFP, Pentagon Review Set For Sept. 10

NAVAIR ‘On the Precipice’ of Releasing UCLASS RFP, Pentagon Review Set For Sept. 10

X-47B tail number 501 flies over USS Theodore Roosevelt on Aug. 17, 2014. US Naval Institute Photo

X-47B tail number 501 flies over USS Theodore Roosevelt on Aug. 17, 2014. US Naval Institute Photo

Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) is “on the precipice,” of releasing a final restricted request for proposal (RFP) for its surveillance intensive unmanned carrier-based air vehicle (UAV), NAVAIR’s head of unmanned aviation told reporters on Sunday in Norfolk, Va.

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U.S. Fighters Strike ISIS Near Mosul Dam

U.S. Fighters Strike ISIS Near Mosul Dam

F/A-18E Super Hornet, attached to the Tomcatters of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 31, launches from the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush (CVN-77) on July 31, 2014. US Navy Photo

F/A-18E Super Hornet, attached to the Tomcatters of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 31, launches from the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush (CVN-77) on July 31, 2014. US Navy Photo

U.S. airstrikes have helped paved the way for Iraqi Kurdish forces to retake a critical dam in Northern Iraq according to the Pentagon. Over the past three days, U.S. forces have conducted 35 airstrikes against Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS or ISIL) terrorists around the Mosul Dam complex. Read More

Sunk, Scrapped or Saved: The Fate of America’s Aircraft Carriers

Sunk, Scrapped or Saved: The Fate of America’s Aircraft Carriers

USS Constellation (CV-64). US Navy Photo

USS Constellation (CV-64). US Navy Photo

American aircraft carriers at their peak are the queens of the high seas, outclassing even America’s nearest peer competitors. They’re the anchors of U.S. seapower, and have a commensurate price tag, costing billions of dollars to build and thousands of sailors to man.

But even the proudest ships outlive their military usefulness — and sometimes they’re barely worth the trouble to tear them down. Read More

Pentagon Defends Early Sinjar Threat Picture, Blames Initial Surveillance

Pentagon Defends Early Sinjar Threat Picture, Blames Initial Surveillance

Displaced people from the minority Yazidi sect walk toward the Syrian border on the outskirts of Sinjar mountain on Aug. 11. Reuters Photo

Displaced people from the minority Yazidi sect walk toward the Syrian border on the outskirts of Sinjar mountain on Aug. 11. Reuters Photo

The Pentagon on Thursday vehemently defended its initial assessment of the humanitarian crisis in northern Iraq, despite new reports the amount of Iraqi civilians trapped on the Sinjar mountain range was closer to 4,000 — not 40,000. Read More

Destroyer Mahan Leaves For Persian Gulf

Destroyer Mahan Leaves For Persian Gulf

USS Mahan (DDG 72) transits the Mediterranean Sea on Aug. 31 2013. US Navy Photo

USS Mahan (DDG 72) transits the Mediterranean Sea on Aug. 31 2013. US Navy Photo

The guided missile destroyer USS Mahan (DDG-72) left Naval Station Norfolk, Va. for a five-month deployment to the Persian Gulf, according to local press reports. Read More