2/27/2026 Coming Soon: Experimental CCA Ops, Flights with F-22s .jpg) The Air Force plans to put Collaborative Combat Aircraft in the hands of Airmen to experiment with the semi-autonomous drones this summer, Gen. Dale R. White said Feb. 25 at AFA’s Warfare Symposium. Col. Timothy Helfrich, portfolio acquisition executive for fighters and advanced aircraft, added that the Air Force will build on a demonstration earlier this month in which an F-22 flew with a surrogate drone, and fly a Raptor with one or both CCAs now under development. |
2/27/2026 How Aerial Electronic Warfare Works  The United States must destroy Iran’s air defense network before it can begin major air operations in the country. Fortunately, it has the tools to do it. The largest US military air and naval armada since the invasion of Iraq in 2003 is currently gathering off the coast of Iran. |
2/27/2026 Former US F-35 instructor accused of providing tactical training to Chinese military  A former F-35 Lightning II instructor described as an elite fighter pilot with decades of experience flying US military aircraft has been accused of conspiring to help the Chinese military. Major (Ret'd) Gerald Brown Jr, 65, was arrested in Indiana and charged with providing defence services to Chinese pilots without authorisation, according to the US Department of Justice. |
2/27/2026 Why Türkiye wants 12 more Eurofighter Typhoons—and possibly more  Türkiye plans to acquire at least 12 additional Eurofighter Typhoon aircraft on top of the 44 units it announced it would purchase last year, adding vitality to the Turkish Air Force’s aging fleet of F-16 Fighting Falcons and a few F-4E Phantoms. |
2/27/2026 Thousands of Combat Aircraft Components Disappear From Italian Air Force Warehouse  Thousands of critical avionics components have disappeared from an Italian Air Force warehouse in Brindisi. Euronews reported that investigators are probing the disappearance of nearly 2,500 aircraft components for military planes worth about €17 million. The missing items include electronic modules and systems for Panavia Tornado fighter-bombers, AMX International attack aircraft and Lockheed C-130 Hercules transport planes. |
2/26/2026 Su-30SM Fighter Jet Crashes in Kazakhstan  A Su-30SM fighter jet of Kazakhstan’s Air Force crashed during a training flight, the country’s Defense Ministry said. The crew ejected in time and survived. A special commission set up by the Defense Ministry has launched an investigation to determine the exact causes and circumstances of the crash. |
2/26/2026 Four years of war: How many aircraft have Russia and Ukraine lost?  Four years after Russia’s full-scale invasion, the air war over Ukraine remains finely balanced.
Russia entered the conflict with a vastly larger fleet, yet hundreds of confirmed and unconfirmed aircraft losses, ageing legacy jets and limited replacement capacity have steadily narrowed its effective strength. Ukraine, despite heavy attrition, has survived through dispersal, adaptation and Western fighter donations. |
2/26/2026 United States deploys over 300 military aircraft to Central Command area of responsibility, open sources indicate  Open-source data shows that more than 300 U.S. military aircraft are deployed to U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) as tensions rise between Washington and Tehran. Hundreds of aircraft remain on standby ahead of a third round of indirect nuclear talks between the United States and Iran scheduled for Thursday in Geneva. |
2/26/2026 General Running Air Force Reserve Wants Surplus F-15E Strike Eagles, New F-15EX Eagle IIs  The commander of Air Force Reserve Command (AFRC) has said that he would like to field F-15E Strike Eagle and F-15EX Eagle II combat aircraft to help the command meet its commitment to supporting the overall Air Force mission. AFRC commander Lt. Gen. John P. Healy was speaking at the Air & Space Forces Association’s annual Warfare Symposium, where TWZ is in attendance. |
2/26/2026 Saab To Fly Fighter-sized Uncrewed Aircraft Next Year  Sweden's Saab is preparing to make the first flight of an uncrewed fighter-sized demonstration aircraft in 2027. The project is gathering pace as the NATO member state solidifies a strategy for its future combat aircraft program by 2030 in a process that could see it partner with other nations or decide to go it alone. |