air force

The Tranquil, Tron-Like Beauty Of A Plane Refueling In Mid-Air

You’re looking at a C-17 Globemaster III aircraft being refueled by the 151st Air Refueling Wing over southern Idaho last week.


Air Force’s New Ads Look Like Iron Man

Remember in the first Iron Man movie when Tony Stark had a lot to do with the US Air Force? That was pretty awesome. Seems the Australian Defence Force is now trying to take that lead with a new recruitment drive that looks just as cool.


How To Jump Out Of A Chinook In Style

These airmen sure make jumping out of the back of massive transport helicopter under the roar of spinning rotors look good. It looks like they’re just chilling up there standing on air. They’re defying physics — with the help of a photographer, of course.


US Air Force Is Considering A Sprawling Tunnel System For Nuclear Missiles

In an effort to upgrade its ageing nuclear weapons and accompanying silos, the US Air Force is exploring the possibility of chauffeuring its missiles around in a massive, underground network of tunnels. Driving Miss Daisy, meet the Apocalypse.


Monster Machines: Why Are The Most Vital Aircraft In The USAF Arsenal Owned By NASA?

While chatter between the US Air Force is spoken exclusively in English, communications between their aircrafts’ electronic systems is more akin to the United Nations cafeteria — a “dog’s breakfast of different datalinks,” according to Lt. Gen. William Lord. Since the numerous competing defence contractors tasked with building military aircraft often install contradicting and incompatible systems, the USAF employs a pair of legacy NASA fliers to act as battlefield interpreters.


Monster Machines: Battlefield Routers Make Air Strikes Even More Accurate

Battlefield communications will be getting a boost in the near future. The US Air Force has just completed testing on a new plane-mounted wireless router system that will allow troops to collaborate with other ground forces as well as jets overhead.


Twin F35 Fighters Suckling On The Sweet Milk Of Freedom

Aerial refuelling is an invaluable technique, not only extending a jet’s operational endurance, it allows for more and heavier equipment to be carried than would otherwise be possible. Since its inception in the biplane era, this technology has developed into what you see here: two F-35C Lightning II jets attached to the business end of a Lockheed Martin KC-130 Hercules. At the same time. That’s a first.


Prank Call Sends Two F-15s To Protect Passenger Plane

Two F-15s scrambled from Portland to meet Alaska Airlines flight 819 in the middle of the Pacific last night because there was supposedly a hijacker on board. A hijacker probably named Mike Crotch, because there was really no hijacker at all — the whole thing was the result of a prank call.


US Air Force Used To Test Ejector Seats With Drugged Bears

In 1950, the United States Air Force had a new bomber called the B-58 Hustler, the first to go Mach 2. Naturally they wanted to include ejector seats to allow pilots a chance to bail out, but first they had to do a lot of testing, and they did it with bears. Bears on drugs.


Google Accidentally Photographs Military Drone Landing

Around the clock, satellites are snapping and re-snapping the Earth’s surface from space. Also around the clock, weaponised killer drones are making the rounds — and it looks like the two just had a chance encounter.