Artificial IntelligenceSixth Flight Test of XQ-58A Valkyrie Features First Weapons Bay Release The Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) on March 26 conducted the sixth flight test of the Kratos XQ-58A Valkyrie drone at Yuma Proving Ground, Ariz.–a demonstration that featured the launching of an Area-I ALTIUS-600…
MilitaryDigital Engineering Efforts for Munitions Yield Lessons Learned for Possible Fielding Last fall, former U.S. Air Force acquisitions chief Will Roper held out the possibility that the service would soon announce an e-series, digitally engineered weapon to follow the Air Force designation of…
MilitaryFifth Generation Fighters Vital to Respond to Future Crises in Pacific Theater, Commander Says Adm. Phil Davidson, the commander of U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, told lawmakers this week that fifth generation fighters, such as the Lockheed Martin F-35 and F-22, are vital to respond to future crises in the…
Electrification and SustainabilityVolansi and Roper Pledge to Use Roper’s Ideas on Commercial/Military Integration, Not His Access While the U.S. Air Force awarded Concord, Calif.-based drone maker, Volansi a contract last December to participate in the service’s prototype effort for the Skyborg low-cost attritable demonstrator–a project worth up to $400 million,…
Air TaxiDespite COVID-19, eVTOL Avionics Development Forges Ahead While the COVID-19 pandemic has put a crimp in aviation worldwide, avionics development for future electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) applications has forged ahead. “Most of our engineers are currently working…
AI & AutonomyAir Force Research Lab to Test Multiple Skyborg Prototypes This Year Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) Commander Brig. Gen. Heather Pringle and Air Force program executive officer for aircraft and advanced weapons Brig. Gen. Dale White are leading an effort this year to…
MilitaryUS Air Force Testing Dialable Effects Munition This Year The Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) is conducting a Joint Concept Technology Demonstration (JCTD) with the Navy on an AFRL-developed Dialable Effects Munition (DEM) that would allow pilots to dial up or…
MilitaryRoper: F-35 Program at an ‘Inflection Point,’ as Air Force Looks to Reduce Flying Hour Cost to Bank for Future Systems The program for the Lockheed Martin F-35 fighter, managed by the F-35 Joint Program Office (JPO) at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Maryland, is at an “inflection point” in which the program…