The Air Force has sent six of its “Golden” F-15s, those receiving upgrades including the latest radars—the Active Electronic Scanned Array System version 2—to Kadena AB, Japan, on the island of Okinawa. Over the next 10 years, the Air Force plans to upgrade 178 F-15s with the v2 AESA and send several more to Kadena, reports SrA. Jeremy McGuffin. The new radars are designed to provide better target acquisition and greater reliability. With no moving parts, the v2 AESA requires maintenance about every 1,000 hours compared to the aircraft’s earlier radar, with a hydraulically steered antenna, needed maintenance about every 80 hours.
Three B-1B Lancers from the 7th Bomb Wing flew over the Indo-Pacific alongside F-16s from the Japanese Air Self Defense Force recently, as part of a joint large force exercise. The mission began and ended in the continental U.S., as the bombers flew 31 hours and landed Jan. 11.