Tag: US Air Force

Montana’s 150 missile sites in line for replacement as Chinese spy balloon questions remain

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)

Montana’s 150 missile sites in line for replacement as Chinese spy balloon questions remain

Bartel is a state senator representing a district in Fergus County, an area with some of Malmstrom’s missile sites.

The Department of Defense has referenced these critical zones in its media briefings on the balloon in recent days. Meanwhile, the Department of Defense has been making plans for a massive overhaul of the nuclear missiles scattered across the state.

The upgrades are something Bartel is familiar with because 50 of those missile locations are in Fergus County.

He says the upgrades were set to start in 2025. Now that’s been pushed back, and talks about upgrades with the Air Force suddenly became radio silent.

“We’ve been told that the project has been pushed out. It’s been pushed out two years,” he said. “They are having some redesign issues with the missiles themselves.”

Ukraine expects to receive 24 modern fighter jets, says Air Force Command + More

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)

Ukraine expects to receive 24 modern fighter jets, says Air Force Command

But even once negotiations for the delivery of these jets will be completed, Ukraine will not be able to use them on the battlefield for months, as training of pilots and technicians will take at least half a year, Ihnat warned.

Related:

Ukraine Situation Report: Kyiv Improving Airfields Anticipating Western Fighters

There is currently one Ukrainian student in the U.S. Air Force Aviation Leadership Program, which provides pilot training in the T-6A, not geared ultimately for any one specific combat aircraft, Air Force Capt. Rachel Salpietra, an Air Force Secretary spokesperson told The War Zone Friday afternoon.

“Ukraine has been participating in the program with us for the last 12 years,” she added. “Ukrainian maintainers and engineers have not participated in any training with the U.S. Air Force for the past several years.”

UK might donate fighter jets to Ukraine for air policing – The Telegraph

Commenting on the matter, one of the newspaper’s sources said “never say never,” while another one stressed that “it’s not the priority now,” regarding fighter jet transfers.

How Much it Actually Costs to Fly U.S. Military Aircraft

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)

How Much it Actually Costs to Fly U.S. Military Aircraft

The F-35 Joint Strike Fighter costs $41,986 an hour across all models, including the F-35A for the Air Force, the F-35B for the Marine Corps, and the F-35C for the Marine Corps and Navy. The Air Force in particular is stuck with the headache of replacing the F-16, which costs $26,927 an hour, with a plane that costs 25 percent more to operate, permanently raising costs. This is especially a problem as the F-35 was originally promised to cost the same to operate as the F-16. The Air Force must now either buy fewer F-35s or figure out how to foot a bigger annual bill.