Breaking Defense
• Michael Marrow, Valerie Insinna
North Carolina Sen. Thom Tillis Budd is sponsoring a trio of bills aimed at boosting fighter-jet inventory and retaining pilots, with implications for multi-year procurement plans that could shape future U.S. Air Force force structure. The effort is positioned as adding airpower support through the NDAA pipeline.
AeroTime
• Clement Charpentreau
By AeroTime: Swiss-Dutch defense company Destinus announced on May 18, 2026, the accelerated development of RUTA Block 3, a 2,000-kilometer (1,240-mile) range precision-strike weapon developed in partnership with Germany’s Rheinmetall.
UK Defence Journal
AeroTime
• Clement Charpentreau
By AeroTime: France's DGA has signed a joint contract with Saab and Scania France for 17 Giraffe 1X radars to strengthen short and very short-range air defense.
FlightGlobal
• Greg Waldron
By FlightGlobal: The C295 is a key element in Indian air force efforts to upgrade its tactical airlift capabilities. The first Airbus Defence & Space C295 tactical transport produced in India is being prepared for its maiden sortie.
Air Data News
• Ricardo Meier
By Air Data News: Turkish Air Force commander Gen Ziya Cemal Kadıoğlu visited Portugal’s Beja Air Base last week, where he toured the Portuguese Air Force’s KC-390 Millennium fleet, simulator and maintenance facilities during an official visit to the country.
Task & Purpose
• Nicholas Slayton
By Task & Purpose: Video from the event at Mountain Home Air Force Base shows four parachutes in the sky after two E/A-18G Growlers collided in midair.
Aviation Week
• Tony Osborne
By Aviation Week: UK Eurofighters deploy APKWS rockets in the Middle East to counter one-way attack drones, marking a rapid integration of guided rocket technology.
UK Defence Journal
Associated Press
• Associated Press
By Associated Press: The USS Gerald R. Ford has returned home to Virginia. The world's largest aircraft carrier is back in port at Naval Station Norfolk after an 11-month deployment.
DefenseNews.com
• J.D. Simkins
