Why carrier pilots call the LSO “paddles”, what happens on the LSO platform, and how every carrier landing is graded from OK underline to Cut.
A-29 Super Tucano: The Propeller Fighter Europe Wants as a Drone Hunter
Brazil’s A-29 Super Tucano went from jungle counter-insurgency to Afghanistan, and now to Europe’s debate over cheap drone interceptors.
Fuel Tankering Explained: Why Airlines Carry Fuel They Don’t Need
Why airliners often load fuel for the next flight too, what it costs in extra CO2, and how Europe’s ReFuelEU rules now limit tankering.
NATO Nuclear Sharing Explained: Steadfast Noon and the Dual-Capable Jets
American B61 bombs, European jets and crews: how NATO nuclear sharing works, which aircraft carry the mission, and what Steadfast Noon trains.
Johannes Steinhoff: From a Burning Me 262 to the Head of NATO’s Military Committee
Burned in an Me 262 crash in 1945, Johannes Steinhoff later rebuilt the Luftwaffe, tackled the Starfighter crisis and chaired NATO’s Military Committee.
Dassault Mirage IIIV: The Nine-Engine VTOL Fighter That Hit Mach 2
France’s Mirage IIIV used eight lift jets and a turbofan to take off vertically, and hit Mach 2.04 in 1966. NATO’s requirement died first.
EWR VJ 101: The First VTOL Fighter to Break the Sound Barrier
In 1964 West Germany’s six-engine VJ 101 C became the first vertical take-off aircraft to fly faster than sound. Then the requirement changed.
Hollywood Burbank Airport Opens Its $1.3 Billion Terminal
Burbank’s new 14-gate, all-electric terminal opened on 13 October 2026, replacing buildings dating to 1930. Passengers still board from the ramp.
X-62 VISTA: AI Test Jet Draws 30 Proposals Where 3 Were Expected
The Air Force Test Pilot School wanted three AI test concepts for its X-62 VISTA in FY2027-28. It got more than 30.
IRIS-T SLM: German Air Force Fires It Live for the First Time on Crete
Air Defence Missile Group 61 fired a live IRIS-T SLM missile at NAMFI on Crete, certifying the system two years after the first fire unit arrived.
FAA Grounds the Elixir Trainer After a Fatal Flap Failure in France
An FAA emergency AD grounds all Elixir trainers after a 1 October crash at Rochefort in which the left flap detached and both test pilots died.
Massed Modular Aircraft: USAF’s Reaper Successor to Fly by 2028
Air Force Secretary Troy Meink says the autonomous MQ-9 Reaper successor will field operational prototypes in 2028 and enter mass production in 2029.
Piper Malibu Mirage Crash Near Wisconsin Dells Kills Six
A Piper PA-46-350P Malibu Mirage flying from Kenosha to Menomonie crashed in Sauk County on 13 October 2026, killing all six aboard.
Israel Signs for 12 AH-64E Apache Helicopters After a Budget Scare
Israel signed for 12 Boeing AH-64E Apaches on 14 October 2026, six days after missing the US deadline. Deliveries start in the early 2030s.
Frankfurt Airport Jet Fuel Shortage: Lufthansa Orders Tankering
Lufthansa is telling crews to bring extra fuel into Frankfurt as pipeline capacity and a low Rhine squeeze supplies at Germany’s busiest airport.
F-35C Lands on a Ford-Class Carrier for the First Time: USS John F. Kennedy
VX-23 made the first F-35C arrested landing on a Ford-class carrier aboard the future USS John F. Kennedy on 13 October 2026, and the first EMALS launch a day later.
Houthis Claim a Missile Hit on a Saudi Eurofighter Typhoon Over Saada
Houthi spokesman Yahya Saree claims a surface-to-air missile hit a Royal Saudi Air Force Typhoon over Saada. Saudi Arabia has not confirmed any loss.