Bears Watching

Air Force Keeping F-16s, Not Moving Toward Fighter Derived From MR-F or T-7 for Now

Aug. 14, 2022

With upgrades, F-16s can serve as a numbers-builder in the combat air forces until the 2040s, and it’s not necessary to launch its successor yet, program officials said at an industry conference. “We anticipate hundreds of F-16s in active service for decades to come,” meaning into the 2040s, Col. Tim…

Requirements for KC-Y Likely in Fall; Analysis of Alternatives for KC-Z Set for 2024

Aug. 12, 2022

The Air Force’s nascent KC-Z program, aimed at developing a next-generation family of systems for aerial refueling, will look to launch its analysis-of-alternatives study in 2024, years earlier than originally planned. Originally, the analysis of alternatives for the KC-Z was set for “maybe in the 2030s,” Paul Waugh, program executive…

Air Force Contemplates Reorganizing Software Factories; Kessel Run Looks to Expand

Aug. 12, 2022

The Air Force's network of software development teams has grown prodigiously in recent years, with 17 software factories, three software engineering groups, and two enterprise services spread across the U.S. Now, however, USAF is reconsidering how it wants to organize those teams—having them work more closely together or possibly even…

New Cost Estimate to Upgrade and Operate Boneyard-Bound F-22s Due in September

Aug. 12, 2022

The Air Force will have an estimate of what it would cost to upgrade 33 Block 20 training F-22s to operational configuration by mid-September, and it will likely be “a tremendous number,” Brig. Gen. Dale White, program executive officer for fighters and advanced aircraft, told reporters at an industry conference.…

USAF Already Considering the Future of Combat Search and Rescue After Cutting HH-60W Buy

Aug. 12, 2022

While the Air Force is keeping a seemingly optimistic outlook about the future of its MH-139 Grey Wolf fleet, despite problems receiving FAA certification, another of the service’s helicopter programs is being prematurely curtailed—and officials are already considering what might come next.

More USAF ‘Operational Imperatives’ Likely Coming

Aug. 11, 2022

Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall distilled the top fighting priorities of the Air Force and Space Force into seven “operational imperatives” chiefly as a mechanism to identify the spending transitions needed in the fiscal 2023 budget. But they are likely to persist, and more—on electronic warfare, cyber, and munitions—may be…

Air Force Looks Beyond AETP for Engines to Power NGAD Fighter

Aug. 11, 2022

The Air Force’s Adaptive Engine Transition Program is demonstrating and maturing key technologies, but it won’t produce the engine that powers the service’s Next Generation Air Dominance fighter, a key acquisition official said. That engine will come from the lesser-known Next Generation Adaptive Propulsion program, which is still in its…

After Yearlong Delay, MH-139 Ready for Military Utility Testing

Aug. 11, 2022

After months of unexpected delays, the Air Force’s MH-139 Grey Wolf is set to enter military utility testing within the coming month, a service program officer said. The Air Force first announced flight testing of the Grey Wolf, intended to patrol the service’s sprawling intercontinental ballistic missile fields, in February…

Richardson: Digital Design Is Making Old Review Processes Obsolete

Aug. 11, 2022

The era of “three-day critical design reviews” of Air Force programs may be ending with the advent of digital design and development methods, Gen. Duke Z. Richardson, head of Air Force Materiel Command, told attendees at an industry conference. “This is completely transforming how we’re doing systems engineering,” Richardson said…

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