1,177 articles
Latest Air Force stories, analysis, and updates from SOFREP.
Oh, the queep. The ever-present, life-sucking, hope-smashing bane of (in this case) tactical aviation. We have discussed this scurge at great length, as it is one of the biggest factors driving immensely-talented aviators out of the military. In a bold statement, Major General Michael Fortney, Vice Commander of Air Force Global Strike Command, has put […]
On 2 May 1999, then-Lieutenant Colonel David Goldfein was the commander of the 555th Fighter Squadron (Once Green…) at Aviano Air Base, Italy. While flying his Block 40 F-16CM over Serbia on a mission to destroy enemy air defenses (now referred to as Destructive SEAD), Goldfein’s jet–which also happened to be his flagship–was hit by […]
The skies above Western New York will soon be missing the familiar sound of the mighty C-130 Hercules. This morning, members the 914th Airlift Wing, based at Niagra Falls Air Reserve Station left for their final deployment in the Herk. The unit will be switching to the KC-135 Stratotanker. Although it will be a bittersweet […]
Happy Monday, FighterSweep Fans! We know it’s, for some, the most dreaded day of the week. To that we say “Nonsense!” It is the opportunity to attack your week and your respective to-do lists with renewed vigor and purpose! And you’re looking for motivation, we bring that to you now, courtesy of the 492nd Fighter […]
FighterSweep Fans, you can’t help but be a little excited when a B-Course graduates a new group of fledgling warriors. It truly doesn’t matter which MDS you’re talking about, either–Light Gray, Mud Hen, Viper, or Raptor. In this case, our congratulations go out to Class 15-ABH, which graduated this weekend from the 311th Fighter Squadron […]
We at FighterSweep understand what it’s like to jump through all the hoops necessary to get an anniversary paint scheme approved for a U.S. Air Force aircraft. So when we learned the Oregon Air National Guard’s 173rd Fighter Wing was embarking on a similar task, we knew it would probably be a difficult sell to […]
During the recent FighterSweep trip to the Land of No Slack, “Stitch” was instrumental in arranging for a 142nd Fighter Wing jet to take part in our Oregon Air National Guard 75th Anniversary photo shoot. The “Redhawks” are a unit loaded with incredibly talented and experienced Eagle Drivers, and Stitch can trace his family’s proud […]
Any aviation photojournalist’s dream would be to catch a Raptor down low in the mountains of Wales, running what we refer to as the Mach Loop. It is an absolutely epic location, where the British Hawks, Typhoons, and Tornados–as well as USAF Eagles and Strike Eagles–can be seen down low, raging through valleys with steep […]
Five years ago, a phone rang in the 28th Bomb Wing vice commander’s office, and that exchange led to Ellsworth AFB making history–and on a grand scale. The end result became the first time the Rockwell (Boeing) B-1B Lancer launched from the continental United States to support overseas combat operations. It was how Operation Odyssey […]
This is a topic we’ve touched on quite a bit in the past few months. The Air Force continues to hemorrhage talent from its community of pilots, but here’s a little known fact: the exodus is impacting the Air Force Reserve even more than it is on the active duty side. The reason boils down […]
Happy Saturday, FighterSweep Fans! This is a pretty cool story that was shared with us and we wanted to pass it on to you. Traditional “nose art” was banned by the U.S. Air Force in the 1970s, and only returned in 1998. Long gone are the days of the scantily-clad pinup girls which adorned many […]
Happy Wednesday, FighterSweep Fans! Shortly after Secretary of the Air Force, Deborah Lee James, announced the B-21 at this year’s Air Warfare Symposium in Orlando, the service also announced it would like help in naming the aircraft. We’ve heard some good suggestions, some interesting ones, and some that are just…well…just read on. And you can […]
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