Space Almanac

Aug. 1, 2003
Facts, figures, agency and system profiles, budget data, and other information about US and foreign space programs.

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USAF to Cut F-35 Buy in Future Years Defense Plan

May 14, 2021
The Air Force wants to scale back buys of the F-35 over the next five years, hoping to get sustainment costs down and to wait for the more capable Block 4 version, according to talking points prepared for Chief of Staff Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr. The reduced buy will…

Making the Air Force’s Case for Big Fighter Cuts

May 14, 2021
To ensure it can compete—and win—against peer adversaries such as China and Russia in the future, the Air Force must divest its aging equipment and instead invest in more capable and advanced aircraft, said Lt. Gen. S. Clinton Hinote, deputy chief of staff for strategy, integration, and requirements. The challenge…

AFCENT Can Now Generate Air Tasking Orders in the Cloud

May 14, 2021
The 609th Air Operations Center at Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar, in early May became the Air Force’s first AOC to operationally use the Kessel Run All Domain Operations Suite to build an air tasking order. The new cloud-based system allows planners to build an Air Tasking Order from anywhere…

Air Force Wants to Cut 421 Old Fighters, Buy 304 New Ones

May 14, 2021
The Air Force plans to begin evolving its fighter fleet to one that can win a Pacific war by retiring 421 old jets and buying 304 new ones, transitioning away from the F-22 and A-10 to an advanced, sixth-generation fighter and an F-16 replacement in about 15 years, according to…

DOD Eases Mask Rules to Follow New CDC Guidance

May 14, 2021
The Defense Department will no longer require fully vaccinated personnel to wear masks at DOD facilities. The guidance applies to all those who are two weeks beyond their final dose, both indoors and outdoors, according to a May 13 memo from Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen H. Hicks. The memo…

DAF Will Devote Office to Digital Engineering as Advances Gain Steam

May 13, 2021
The Department of the Air Force will set up a permanent office dedicated to digital engineering within Air Force Materiel Command that the Air Force and Space Force will share. The department is “putting some resources and personnel in place to move from what has been a wonderful and fantastic…

New Force Design: NGAD Needed Soon, F-22 Sunset Begins in 2030

May 13, 2021
The Air Force is preparing to unveil a 30-year fighter force design that calls for two new fighters—one for high-end fights and one for less demanding missions—a new way of providing close air support, and the retirement of the F-22 starting in about 2030, a top USAF official explained. Until…

‘Skyrocketing’ Support Costs Threaten Air Force Modernization

May 13, 2021
Sharply rising support costs among aging fleets are devouring money the Air Force needs to spend on new technology and new hardware, service Vice Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. David S. Nahom said. The Air Force has to figure out how to divest old hardware without losing readiness in the…