AeroTime
• Clement Charpentreau
Thales has completed its first firings of the X-Fire ground-based long-range strike launcher in France on May 20, 2026, advancing the company’s bid in the FLP-T race. The move signals incremental momentum in France’s effort to field a sovereign long-range land-strike capability.
Air Data News
• Ricardo Meier
By Air Data News: Phase-out of first-generation Hornets aligns with transition to all-F-35 force; AV-8B Harrier II set for final operational flight U.S.
FlightGlobal
• Greg Waldron
By FlightGlobal: The Marine Attack Helicopter will provide firepower to South Korean marines, including an air-to-air capability. The Korea Aerospace Industries Marine Attack Helicopter (MAH) is entering its final development phase following an extensive test campaign.
politico.eu
• Nicholas Vinocur, Zoya Sheftalovich
By politico.eu: A recent increase in incursions into Baltic airspace has bolstered interest in what Kyiv has learned in more than four years of war with Moscow.
AeroTime
• Stephen Pope
By AeroTime: A guilty plea in a US export-control case shows how aircraft parts allegedly moved to Russia through shadowy brokers and intermediaries.
The War Zone
• Joseph Trevithick
By The War Zone: The persistent surveillance capabilities the glider-like ULTRA offers are in high demand, especially amid MQ-9 losses in fighting with Iran.
Air Data News
• Ricardo Meier
By Air Data News: Standard procedure restores fleet readiness after tanker destroyed in accident earlier US Air Force (USAF) is pulling a KC-135 Stratotanker out of long-term storage at the Davis-Monthan boneyard in Arizona to replace a tanker destroyed in a crash earlier this month, military officials confirmed.
AeroTime
• Joshua R. Kroeker
By AeroTime: Europe’s critical infrastructure faces a growing drone threat, but resilience must move beyond compliance paperwork and into operational readiness.
