Category: Aviation

Today we are going to look at the process of becoming a Naval Aviator, specifically a Strike Fighter Pilot in the F/A-18 Hornet/Super Hornet community! We will look at all of the phases of the process, from commissioning all the way to the fleet, illustrating see why those pilot who wear the Wings of Gold […]

The latest Pentagon assessment of the F-35 program has reached the media, and with the long-delayed fighter finally entering combat operations with the Marine Corps late last year, one would think the report would offer some good news for the most advanced fighter on the planet. Unfortunately, it doesn’t. In fact, those first F-35s to […]

A U.S. Navy F/A-18 Super Hornet peels away from a 28th Expeditionary Aerial Refueling Squadron KC-135 Stratotanker after refueling during a mission in support of Operation Freedom Sentinel over Afghanistan, Dec. 14, 2018. The Super Hornet is deployed to highlight the mobility, flexibility and power projection capabilities of the U.S. Navy.   U.S. Air Force […]

When I was a kid, blessed with my ignorance of geopolitics and the looming rise of terrorism, I was aware of only a few legitimate threats to my safety and well-being. Rocky, I was aware, had already successfully defused the Cold War through the art of boxing, which left only looming concerns about clowns, quicksand […]

A little while back, Fighter Sweep ask asked about what it’s really like to take a fighter up above the Mach barrier. We asked C.W. Lemoine, author and former F-16 and F/A-18 pilot to break it down for us. Here’s what he had to say: Dear Fightersweep, What’s it like going supersonic? That has to […]

U.S. Navy Aviation Boatswain’s Mate (Handling) 3rd Class Ashley Crescimanno, from Albany, New York, directs an F/A-18E Super Hornet, assigned to Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 97, on the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74) in the Arabian Gulf, Jan. 17, 2019, during exercise Intrepid Sentinel. Intrepid Sentinel brings together […]

There are two surefire ways to gather a crowd and get them looking at the sky: one’s an air show and the other is fireworks. Unless you’re the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF), that is–they’ve combined both into one hell of a light show. On January 26th, as the nation gathered to celebrate Australia Day, […]

Working as a defense journalist usually means making it your business to read, study, research, and then opine. As a reader, your job is to try your best to understand not only what’s going on, but the motives that led to it, the complicated diplomatic relationships that informed it, and the potential ramifications of not […]

LEMOORE, Calif. (Nov. 16, 2018) An F-35C Lightning II, attached to the “Argonauts” of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 147, stationed at Naval Air Station Lemoore, fly in formation for a photo exercise. VFA-147 is the first U.S. Navy Operational F-35C squadron based out of NAS Lemoore. Commander, Joint Strike Fighter Wing, headquartered at Naval Air […]

“Dude, we’re going flying,” my flight lead said with a chuckle as I showed him the satellite image on my phone while he worked on a lineup card for the day’s mission in the Ready Room. It showed an orange and pink blob covering the edges of the airspace over the Gulf of Mexico and […]

A Hawaii Air National Guard F-22 Raptor receives feel from a Wisconsin Air National Guard KC-135 Stratotanker Dec. 11, 2018, near the Hawaiian Islands. Sentry Aloha provides tailored, cost effective and realistic combat training for U.S. Air Force, Air National Guard and other Department of Defense services to provide U.S. warfighters with the skill sets […]

As soon as word hit the media about the Pentagon applying pressure to the U.S. Air Force to look into procuring new F-15X aircraft, defense officials and even defense industry journalists have lamented the idea of purchasing new fourth-generation airframes in the era of stealth fighters like the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. Critics argued there’s […]