Belgium: Airstrikes Against Daesh To Resume

Not surprisingly, the terrorist attacks in Brussels have angered the Belgians to the point where they have committed to re-mobilizing their fleet of Lockheed-Martin F-16AM Fighting Falcons as part of Operation Inherent Resolve. While Belgium’s Air Component had limited its participation to specific areas, it’s fairly safe to say we’ll be seeing involvement on a […]

Pentagon: F-35 Program Making Solid Progress

Happy Friday, FighterSweep Fans! Despite what the date on the calendar says, we can assure you, this is not an April Fools joke. Contrary to what many are saying, the F-35 program is actually making significant strides in its journey toward full operational capability and system maturity. While it is true the aircraft has a […]

OIR: F-16s Fly The Most, B-1s Drop The Most

Here is the latest breakdown of which airframes are flying the most sorties over Iraq and Syria during Operation Inherent Resolve (OIR). Not surprisingly, the Viper is sitting at the top of the list for the most sorties flown in the AOR while the B-1, again–not surprisingly, is dropping the largest percentage of the ordinance. […]

Japan: Open To Western Fighter Designs

Editor’s Note: Since its unveiling, Japan’s ATD-X aircraft has undertaken an ambitious test program. As you can see in the video, they’re at the point of doing high-speed texts–with both afterburners lit for a short period of time. It won’t be long before this aircraft conducts its first flight, probably within the coming days. That […]

Radar Software In F-35 “Not Stable Enough”

The F-22 Raptor has one million lines of code in its software. The F-35 has eight million lines of code.  That alone brings with it a unique set of challenges. The men and women who fly this airplane shouldn’t have to worry about their state-of-the-art APG-81 AESA radar rebooting in flight–especially in the middle of […]

F-16s To Be Produced In India?

Editor’s Note: Discussions have been flying under the radar in reference to Lockheed-Martin transferring all of its production of F-16s to India. A curious development, given all of the recent discussion of Block 52 Viper sales to Pakistan. The subject was mentioned during the Singapore Air Show by Mr. Phil Shaw, the head of Lockheed-Martin’s […]

T-X Solicitation Delay Pushes FOC Back 2 Years

Editor’s Note: It appears as though the refining of the actual RFP for the Air Force’s T-X jet trainer replacement program will take longer than anticipated, pushing the official solicitation release until sometime right before the end of the calendar year 2016. As a result of the delay, the T-X is not anticipated to reach […]

PKK In Iraq Struck By Turkish Warplanes

Editor’s Note: The PKK is classified as a terrorist organization by the European Union, the United States, and of course Turkey. Since the PKK claimed responsibility for two car-bombings in Ankara, Turkey that killed nearly seventy people. Not surprising the Turkish government would take action, as it has hundreds of times in the past–on both […]

British MoD Looks to SPEAR 3 For F-35

Editor’s Note: SPEAR Cap 3 is set to be part of the offensive armament of British F-35s, both for the Royal Air Force and the Royal Navy’s squadrons. A standoff weapon by design, it features a selective effect warhead and can attack a wide range of mobile targets, day or night. While this may not […]

Skunk Works: Invest In F-22 And F-35

Editor’s Note: If anyone has an appreciation for how difficult it can be to develop a next-generation aircraft, it would be the folks at Lockheed-Martin’s Advanced Development Programs division, better known as the Skunk Works. The next generation of air dominance, better known as NGAD or 6th-Gen, promises to be a difficult task. Because of […]

The S-3 Viking’s Final Goodbye

During its service at Point Mugu, the Lockheed-Martin S-3 Viking–with its substantial endurance, speed and room for multiple types of avionics, pods and test equipment–played a vital role in VX-30’s mission to support the Navy and its customers. Not only did the Viking support test operations at the California base and its adjacent 36,000 square […]

Burner Friday: Gomer On The Move!

Happy Burner Friday, FighterSweep Fans! Here’s a little shout-out to our good friends and Gomer brethren at the 64th Aggressor Squadron at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada. As you all know, the 64 AGRS flies the mighty Viper, and their job is to replicate threat aircraft and TTPs to present a credible threat to Blue […]