Defense News

Africa Military Aircraft Procurement Geopolitical Developments & Conflict Impact Defense Deals

Aviation Week • Tony Osborne

Ethiopia receives first Su-35 fighters from Russia, plans four S-400 air-defense batteries

Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed says Ethiopia has taken delivery of the first two of 12 planned Su-35 multirole fighters, arriving a year ahead of schedule. The deal also includes plans for four S-400 air-defense batteries, adding a major Russian-supplied fighter and air-defense capability to the Ethiopian Air Force.

The War Zone • Thomas Newdick

Ethiopia Gets 12 Russian Su-35 Fighters, Eyes S-400 Air Defenses

defence-blog.com • Dylan Malyasov

Ethiopia receives its first Russian-made Su-35 fighter jets

Also: tass.com

5 Sources

2026-10-28T08:34:27.844178-07:00

Europe Military Aircraft Procurement Airbus

Reuters

Airbus working with Germany, Spain on European fighter jet

By Reuters: Airbus is working closely with ‌the German and Spanish governments on a next-generation fighter jet ⁠for Europe, the company's chief executive said on Wednesday.

1 Source

2026-10-28T12:04:20.392948-07:00

China Space Defense & Militarization Geopolitical Developments & Conflict Impact

NEW

The War Zone • Howard Altman

U.S. Intel Warns China's Space-Based Directed Energy Weapons Could Soon Threaten Satellites

By The War Zone: Battlefield space is heating up as the DIA warns that China could use orbital directed energy weapons to take down satellites by the end of the decade.

1 Source

2026-10-28T12:55:32.088317-07:00

Defense Industry & Major Contractors Launch Vehicles & Space Transportation Space Defense & Militarization

SpaceNews.com • Sandra Erwin

Launch executives warn Pentagon faces capacity crunch through 2030s

By SpaceNews.com: To provide the best experiences, we use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. Consenting to these technologies will allow us to process data such as browsing behavior or unique IDs on this site.

1 Source

2026-10-28T11:30:39.964696-07:00

Military Aircraft Procurement Defense Policy

The War Zone • Joseph Trevithick

Hardened Shelters Critical To Survival Of USAF's Tanker Fleet: Study

By The War Zone: An independent assessment calls for new action to prevent critical aerial refueling assets from being neutralized before they even get in the air.

1 Source

2026-10-28T10:35:10.290174-07:00

UAV Development & Drone Programs SAAB AI General Atomics Defense Industry & Major Contractors

AeroTime • Clement Charpentreau

MQ-9B drone tracks fighter jets at long range with Saab’s LoyalEye radar

By AeroTime: General Atomics and Saab say an MQ-9B drone equipped with LoyalEye radar tracked fighter jets, commercial aircraft and maritime targets in flight tests.

aviationnews.eu

General Atomics and Saab Complete Flight Testing of Airborne Early Warning System on MQ-9B Drone

FlightGlobal

Saab and General Atomics test LoyalEye airborne early warning on MQ-9B

Also: The Aviationist, Seapower Magazine, news.ssbcrack.com and insidedefense.com

10 Sources

2026-10-28T09:34:32.641352-07:00

The War Zone • Howard Altman

Confessions Of An SR-71 Blackbird Pilot

By The War Zone: What it was like to sit at the controls of the Skunk Works' legendary Blackbird while hurtling over hostile territory at Mach 3.3.

2 Sources

2026-10-28T09:05:53.087145-07:00

Satellite Space Force Defense Industry & Major Contractors Boeing

SpaceNews.com • Sandra Erwin

Boeing to be awarded sole-source deal worth up to $946 million to maintain military satellites

By SpaceNews.com: GTON — The U.S. Space Force plans to award Boeing a sole-source contract worth up to $945.9 million to maintain and modernize military communications satellites and ground systems, citing the company’s ownership of proprietary technical data and software needed to perform the work.

1 Source

2026-10-28T10:20:41.285988-07:00

Ethiopia receives first Su-35 fighters from Russia, plans four S-400 air-defense batteries

Ethiopia Gets 12 Russian Su-35 Fighters, Eyes S-400 Air Defenses

Ethiopia receives its first Russian-made Su-35 fighter jets

Airbus working with Germany, Spain on European fighter jet

U.S. Intel Warns China's Space-Based Directed Energy Weapons Could Soon Threaten Satellites

Launch executives warn Pentagon faces capacity crunch through 2030s

Hardened Shelters Critical To Survival Of USAF's Tanker Fleet: Study

MQ-9B drone tracks fighter jets at long range with Saab’s LoyalEye radar

General Atomics and Saab Complete Flight Testing of Airborne Early Warning System on MQ-9B Drone

Saab and General Atomics test LoyalEye airborne early warning on MQ-9B

Confessions Of An SR-71 Blackbird Pilot

Boeing to be awarded sole-source deal worth up to $946 million to maintain military satellites

U.S. Intel Warns China's Space-Based Directed Energy Weapons Could Soon Threaten Satellites

Airbus working with Germany, Spain on European fighter jet

Launch executives warn Pentagon faces capacity crunch through 2030s

Ethiopia Takes Delivery Of Su-35s From Russia, S-400s To Follow

Hardened Shelters Critical To Survival Of USAF's Tanker Fleet: Study

Boeing to be awarded sole-source deal worth up to $946 million to maintain military satellites

Boeing says new fighter contracts will avoid costly mistakes of past defense programs

Putin salutes Musk's genius as Russia plays catch-up with Starlink

How General Atomics views Europe's unmanned future

U.S. intelligence report publishes clear image of China’s secretive spaceplane

Philippines grounds SF-260 fleet after training collision kills four pilots

US Air Force awards Lockheed Martin $694 million to put once-canceled ARRW hypersonic missile into production

US Air Force awards Lockheed Martin $694 million to put once-canceled ARRW hypersonic missile into production

Cosmos 2612’s close approach to ICEYE-X36 raises questions about NATO’s response to Russian space operations

The day’s aerospace signal, in one email.

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