August 26, 2025 Military Aviation News
08/26/2025
The Philippines is eyeing a major $5.58 billion purchase of advanced F-16 fighter jets from the United States to counter increasing aggression from China in the South China Sea. The U.S. government has already approved the sale, and defense contractor Lockheed Martin is sweetening the deal with new technology partnerships. However, the acquisition is shrouded in mystery, as the Filipino Defense Secretary recently downplayed the reports as “media hype,” claiming there was “nothing on the table.”
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08/26/2025
According to the report, the PLAAF in 2007 fielded about 400,000 personnel and nearly 2,700 fighters, bombers, and attack aircraft. By 2025, the force numbers 403,000 personnel with roughly 2,284 combat aircraft. The headline figures conceal a steep dip during the early 2010s, when second- and third-generation jets were retired faster than new aircraft could enter service. At one point, combat aircraft fell to about 1,500 and personnel to around 330,000.
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08/26/2025
China’s new sixth-generation J-36 fighter represents a game-changing strategic pivot designed to counter American airpower. While the U.S. focuses on producing small, technologically superior “boutique” fleets like the F-47, China is emphasizing both quality and quantity. The J-36 is a large, multi-role stealth aircraft designed for mass production on a scale the U.S. industrial base may be unable to match.
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08/26/2025
Former Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba has suggested that France is preparing to expand its promised supply of Mirage 2000-5 fighter jets to Ukraine, doubling the original commitment from 10 to 20 aircraft. The statement came during an interview with Le Monde analyzing the recent meeting between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
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08/26/2025
Fighters from the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) intercepted a Russian Il-20 reconnaissance aircraft in the Alaskan Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) on August 24, marking the third such encounter in one week, ABC News reported on August 25.
NORAD deployed one E-3 Sentry command-and-control plane, two F-16 fighters, and two KC-135 Stratotankers to visually identify the Russian aircraft, which remained in international airspace.
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