Next-gen air dominance and surprise new Air Force leadership: 2025 review
A look at some of the top stories that defined the air warfare beat this year.
Air Force expects first delivery of delayed Boeing Air Force One jets in ‘mid-2028’
The new date marks some progress for the beleaguered Air Force One program, whose challenges have cost Boeing billions of dollars.
10 Breaking Defense op-eds that defined 2025
It's been a whirlwind of a year — and the defense establishment has plenty of thoughts on how it's unfolded and what might come next.
Manufacturing of first F-47 next-gen fighter underway, Air Force’s Allvin says
The Air Force is targeting to fly the jet in 2028, according to Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David Allvin.
Air Force can extend Minuteman ICBMs to 2050, but with risks: GAO
“Today's GAO report confirms that we desperately need an independent review to hold Pentagon officials accountable for wasting and mismanaging billions of taxpayer dollars,” Sen. Elizabeth Warren told Breaking Defense.
Air Force takes first Minuteman III silo offline, in milestone towards Sentinel
The service said that requirements to keep 400 nuclear missiles on alert will not be impacted by the shuttering of a silo located at F.E. Warren Air Force Base in Wyoming.
New Sentinel ICBM silos, B-21’s next milestone flight on USAF radar
Lt. Gen. Andrew Gebara said that the Air Force’s plan to build fresh silos for the Sentinel ICBM will save time and cost, but that a small number may not fit on existing federal lands.
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Northrop back at work on Sentinel ICBM missile silo design: CEO
"While we have continued to make good progress on the missile and the support and sustaining equipment, we are focused now on bringing the command and launch [portion] to that same level of maturity and design," said Northrop CEO Kathy Warden.
HASC adds funds for Virginia-class subs, Ukraine in FY26 policy bill
Republicans successfully batted down a number of Democratic amendments during the 14-hour markup session.
Sentinel ICBM first flight date now in flux, Air Force says
The troubled ICBM program was supposed to fly for the first time in 2026, but now the Air Force says that the date is unknown.
Pentagon considers big shifts for Sentinel ICBM, drone wingmen in FY25, draft documents say
The Air Force could cut about $1 billion from the Sentinel ICBM and add hundreds of millions of dollars for the Collaborative Combat Aircraft drone wingmen program, a draft April proposal says.
Air Force cyber resilience in focus
Cyber resilience has become a frontline mission for the US military. Breaking Defense’s new eBook rounds up key reporting from the 2025 Alamo ACE conference with the latest developments in cyber offense and defense.
Air Force now expects Sentinel ICBMs will ‘predominantly’ need new silos
“Part of the requirements, initially — ten years ago when this program was started — was to reuse the holes, the missile holes at the launch facilities,” said Air Force Gen. Thomas Bussiere. “Shockingly enough, if we look at it, that may not be the answer.”
Trump administration inherits Air Force funding hurdle: 2025 preview
With Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy set to co-lead a commission that could recommend cuts to the Pentagon, many previously unthinkable options may be on the table for the US Air Force as the second Trump administration takes over Washington.
From a runaway ICBM pricetag to AI dogfighting: 5 air warfare stories from 2024
The Air Force notched key successes in 2024, but also saw setbacks for some of the service's biggest priorities.
As Air Force lays out Force Design, top strategist warns service is ‘underfunded’ to face China
“If I had to categorize it, modernization costs are something that we still need,” Lt. Gen. David Harris told Breaking Defense. “And there's even some readiness pieces in here that allow me to have the right supply and support. All of that still needs to come together.”