The Air Force last week received its 268th and final MQ-1 Predator remotely piloted aircraft from manufacturer General Atomics Aeronautical Systems. “This event marks a milestone in Air Force history given the path this aircraft took from conception to operational excellence,” said Col. Christopher Coombs, chief of USAF’s medium-altitude unmanned aircraft systems division at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio. The Predator first flew in 1994 and has become an indispensable component of the Air Force’s overhead intelligence-surveillance-reconnaissance portfolio. At first unarmed, service officials later incorporated Hellfire missiles on the Predator to give it a ground-attack capability. Coombs said the fleet has maintained a mission capable rate more than 90 percent. With no more Predators on order, the Air Force intends to transition gradually to a fleet of more-capable MQ-9 Reapers. (Wright Patterson release)
Congress wants new engines in the F-35 fleet, with installs starting in 2027, according to language in the conference version of the 2022 National Defense Authorization Act. The Air Force is to use at least one of the engines developed under the Advanced Engine Transition Program, but the Navy and…