A KC-135 tanker refueled a Navy F-35C strike fighter for the first time, announced F-35 manufacturer Lockheed Martin. The hook-up took place on Aug. 20 near NAS Patuxent River, Md., with Lt. Col. Patrick Moran piloting the F-35C airframe, CF-1, for the coupling with the tanker, states the company’s Aug. 23 release. With this, all three variants—Air Force’s F-35A, Marine Corps’ F-35B, and Navy’s F-35C—have now taken on fuel from the KC-135, according to the company. Earlier this month, the first F-35C local training sortie took place at the F-35 schoolhouse at Eglin AFB, Fla.
President Joe Biden still hopes to shift to a “sole purpose” policy for nuclear weapons in the future, even as his administration’s new Nuclear Posture Review preserves the U.S.’s longstanding policy of “flexible deterrence,” a top Pentagon official said. Undersecretary of Defense for Policy Colin Kahl, speaking at a side…