Global Conflict Reporting

Category: US Air Force

  • US Air Force F-22s and F-35s deploying to the Middle East.

    US Air Force F-22s and F-35s deploying to the Middle East.

    Four F-35’s and a tanker spotted over Italy

    By. Scott Jackson

    06/17/2025

    In connection to the sudden large wave of aerial refueling tankers spotted leaving the continental US and heading East over the Atlantic and into Europe, the US has announced it is deploying several fighter squads into the Middle East.

    According to reports the fighters have already left and likely have already arrived.

    Statement released on social media from SECDEF Pete Hegseth
    The tankers as they left the US and headed across the Atlantic.
    Final landing position.

    The tankers were previously spotted on the publicly available ADS-B where their location can be tracked so long as the military pilots leave it on. The capability to turn it off is included for missions of a more secret nature. The fact that the locations are turned on is an indication that US military leadership knows people are watching and is attempting to deter any potential enemy’s (Iran). Around 39 tankers total have left from the U.S. since July 15th.

    Tankers location as of an hour ago.

    The F-22 are reported to have been launched or are preparing to launch from Langley AOR force base in Virginia. Langley houses 3 F-22 squadrons, the 1st Fighter Wing and 192nd Fighter Wing. We don’t yet know if the F-22s have left yet but we do know that a l C-17 Globemaster III landed at RAF Mildenhall rhat had departed from Langley.

    The C-17 Globemaster III that landed at RAF Mildenhall on Jun. 17, 2025

    While the C-17 isnt a tanker these massive general cargo planes are used when a squadron or similar moves to a new location. It would be hauling weapons and some of the other administrative equipment needed. More of these flights are likely on the way.

    The F-35’s are believed to be either the Vermont Air National Guard or the 48th FW at RAF Lakenheath, in the UK. The 48th is the only F-35 squadron currently foward deployed so their proximity means they would arrive much sooner and be available for mission tasking as soon as you can load them up.

    I don’t have much more than that for now but it looking more likely that the U.S. is going to get involved in Israel and Irans fighting. Well more so than they already are. It’s a fact that Israel has already had US military support in this conflict but up until this point that support has been purely defensive. U.S. assets have assisted in downing drones and missiles coming from Iran.

    Reuters put out an article about this as well, their writer claimed to have talked to 3 defense department officials, 2 of them stresses the defensive nature of sending these fighters.

    I’ve reached out to several of the squadrons mentioned as well as the pentagon for a statement, however nobody has got back to me, I’ll update if they do.

    One other thing I’ll mention is the rumor of f-16s also being moved to the Middle East out of Italy but I have less info on that.

    The U.S. currently has around 40,000 soldiers in the Middle East. That’s combined everybody from air force to infantry and all the logistics and support crew jn between . 

    Thank you for reading! I’m always available for questions or comments and can be reached by email or through any of my social media pages.
    Your support helps grow this page as well as supports independent journalism and reporting. I’d also like to thank the people who send me tips and heads ups, as well as other reporters who I sourced to help write this any many other articles. Journalism is a team effort in the end. I’ve always felt it’s not about being first it’s about being right. 
    Any spelling mistakes are there to give the article character.

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  • Test launch of an unarmed Minuteman III ICBM (Video Included)

    By. Scott Jackson

    05/24/2025

    On May, 21st at 12:01 AM pacific time the United States Air Force carried out unarmed test launch of the Minuteman III Intercontinental Ballistic Missile from Vandenberg Space Force Base, Calif. the launch was carried out by the U.S. Air Force Global Strike Command.

    Video of the launch.

    The missile was launched from a silo and was carrying a single Mk21 high-fidelity reentry vehicle.

    Minuteman III Intercontinental Ballistic Missile launches during an operational test

    For the Minuteman III test launch a randomly selected missile was selected from Malmstrom Air Force Base, Montana and brought to the Western Test Range at Vandenberg.

    The test range is located on the very coast of the base giving the military a great line of sight for their radars and other sensors to collect telemetry and other data.

    Still image showing the missile silo opening at Vandenberg.
    Image shows the location I believe to be the launch site an Vandenberg.

    “This ICBM test launch underscores the strength of the nation’s nuclear deterrent and the readiness of the ICBM leg of the triad,” said Gen. Thomas Bussiere, commander of the Air Force Global Strike Command. “This powerful safeguard is maintained by dedicated Airmen – missileers, defenders, helicopter operators and the teams who support them – who ensure the security of the nation and its allies.”

    The test was conducted and overseen by Vanderberg’s 377th Test and Evaluation group. Established in 2021, The 377th are the nations only squadron dedicated to testing the nations ICBM stocks.

    Minuteman III remains the bedrock of our nations strategic deterrent and the unwavering dedication of the airmen who ensure its readiness are a testament to its inherent lethality. Their expertise and commitment are vital to maintaining the credible force for peace.” Col. Dustin Harmon, 377th Test and Evaluation group.

    According to the measurements taken by the, U.S. Army Space and Missile defense command’s Ronald Reagan ballistic Missile Defense Test Site, the ICBM’s reentry vehicle flew 4,200 miles and impacted a predetermined target spot near the USASMDC’s Ronald Reagan Ballistic Missile Defense Command, (AKA RTS) on Kwajalein Atoll in the Republic of the Marshall Islands.

    These test launches serve several purposes such as putting the readiness of the U.S. ICBM’s on display as well as testing the reliability and accuracy of the systems and providing important data.

    The RTS uses wide an array of systems to collect every bit of data including its advanced, high speed optical and long range tracking and imaging radar systems. RTS also analyzes the data collected.

    This all falls under the ‘Glory Trip’ missions.

    The Minuteman III is currently being phases out and replaced by the LGM-35A Sentinel. The Sentinel is set to replace all 450 Minuteman III missiles and have a service until the 2070’s.

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  • F-15s deployed to protect Diego Garcia.

    Picture of an F-15E

    By. Scott Jackson

    05/20/2025

    The U.S. Air Force has sent several F-15 fighters to the base at Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean. The fighters are being deployed to help protect the isolated base as well as the important strategic asserts currently deployed there.

    In recent months the base has been the subject of many talks as the arrival of a number of long range strategic bombers was noted by analysts. Satellite imagery taken in late March shows at least 4 B-2 Spirit long range stealth bombers.

    Image taken in late March showing some of the B-2s as well as the refueling aircraft.

    The bombers were used to strike targets in Yemen before the White House announced thag the U.S. had completed its mission in the region (to the dismay of Israel and several other American partners in the region).

    The B-2s have reportedly since left the base but for a time their presence overlapped with that another titan of American air power, 4 B-52H’s that are currently still stationed at the base as of writing.

    At the time this article was started their was believed to be 4 F-15’s that had been moved to the Indian Ocean to help protect the island base and the bombers however TWZ (Who originally broke this story) have since wrote another article and added two more fighters bringing the total to six. While official sources decline to state where the F-15s were moved from, open source trackers believe the jets came from Kadena Air Base in Okinawa, Japan. This belief comes from watching the flight tracking data. While fighter jets don’t usually broadcast their live position through ADS-B, the refueling aircraft often do and can be tracked.

    Kadena airbase in Japan is located 4,000 miles away from the Diego Garcia base in the Indian Ocean.

    Last month Kadena received a contingent of F-15E’s forward deployed from the 336th Fighter Squadron (FS) (Also called the Rocketeers) at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base in North Carolina. Their relatively close proximity to an otherwise remote island makes them ideal candidates for this ACE force protection mission.

    “As the Keystone of the Pacific, Kadena is a pivotal hub for Agile Combat Employment (ACE),” from an Air Force press briefing on the deployment of the 336th to Kadena.“The 18th Wing will continue to receive rotational units that strengthen capabilities, such as ACE, and project combat power in concert with allies and partners.”

    From The War Zone on ACE (From the article that originally broke this story).

    ‘ACE is a term that currently refers to a set of concepts for distributed and disaggregated operations centered heavily on short notice and otherwise irregular deployments, often to remote, austere, or otherwise non-traditional locales.’

    Diego Garcia is one of the most “Austere or otherwise non traditional locales” while still being critically important to Department of Defense operations in the region. While remote the base is used for multiple different DoD needs such as hosting space force activities, being an important navy port(Especially to the nuclear submarine fleet) and using its lagoon as a shelter for the Sealift Command Prepositioning Ship Squadron.

    While the bases remote location protects it from attack, some have suggested that Iran would be capable of hitting the base using missile carrying smaller warheads. Besides Iran, other peer and near-peer adversaries and potential adversaries have the ability to carry out longer range strikes using bombers, drones or missiles, making the presence of these fighters a welcome sight. 

    The War Zone originally broke this story, go check them out, their articles have always been a huge inspiration and they do some really amazing work.

    Thank you for taking the time to read and for your constant support. I wouldn’t be here without you all. To further support my work I would invite you to sign up for my Patreon, where I will be releasing some podcast episodes very soon. Membership and access to the podcast is $1 a month. I wanted to keep it cheap as a thank you for joining me on this adventure and allowing me to do what I love. 

    -Scott

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  • US bombers fly training mission with South Korean Air Force.

    Two U.S. Air Force B-1 Lancers fly in formation with two U.S. F-16 Fighting Falcons and two Republic of Korea Air Force F-35A Lightning IIs

    By. Scott Jackson

    04/15/2024

    Earlier today a pair of U.S. Air Force B-1B Lancers flew across the pacific to train with air units from the Republic of Korea (South Korea).The bombers were joined by two U.S. F-16s and two F-35 Lightning’s II from They carried out what the Air Force is calling offensive and defensive counter air training.

    These missions are important for improving and honing the combat skills between the partner nations as they develops combat procedures with newly acquired tech like the F-35, which given its massive increase in technology requires years of training to fully unlock its full potential on the battlefield. 

    I’ve had the chance to speak with several 5th gen fighter pilots (F-22 and F-35 both) one told me that you can get almost lost or freeze up when trying to process all of the data that the F-35 will give you.F-35 crashes (or less serious incidents) have happened because problems happened while pilots were distracted or they simply got overwhelmed. The F-35 especially demands a huge cognitive load. I’ll add an article of somebody else bringing this up.  -Scott


    https://www.businessinsider.com/test-pilot-f-35-demands-more-than-great-flying-skills-2023-11

    “Our two nations will continue to enhance combined training to deter and respond to North Korean threats through close cooperation,”

    -the South Korean defense ministry said.

    “The training demonstrated the combined extended deterrence posture of the ROK-U.S. alliance in response to North Korea’s advancing nuclear and missile threats,” the Defense Ministry said in a press statement. “It also aimed to enhance interoperability between the two forces.”

    This action also had the added effect of being a “show of force” to North Korea as well as other countries in the area (China and Russia). On the day North Korea was celebrating the birthday of Dictator Kim Jung Un’s great Grandfather and North Korean state founder , Kim Il Sung.

    The two B-1Bs conducting a flyover of Osan Air Base in South Korea.

    The bombers then did a quick flyover of the Osan Airbase and then left the area.

    It’s expected that this will cause a reaction in North Korea. North Korean missile teat have been carried out in the aftermath of these bomber missions in the past. The U.S. and South Korea are likely to increase patrols until things cool down.

    The Rockwell (now Boeing) B-1b lancer, affectionately called “the bone” by those who know and love her is a swept-wing long-range strategic bomber in the U.S. Air Force. The bomber was developed as a way to combine the payload of the B-52’s with the speed of the Convair B-58 Hustler. Originally the Air Force had chose the B-70 Valkyrie for the task, a high altitude bomber with similar speed and altitude capability as the U-2. Around the early 50’s the Soviet unions interceptors at the day couldn’t keep up and the B-70 would have been able to simply fly right past them. However as Surface to Air missile systems improved the ability to fly very fast at low altitudes became the doctrine the Air Force wanted to pursue.

    The Cold War Convair B-58 Hustler.
    Prototype North American XB-70 Valkyrie flying at three times the speed of sound.

    Radars of the day (and today) have several weaknesses, one being that they are only as effective as they can reach with their waves. Terrain and the horizon are the biggest factors here so a bomber flying low enough and far enough away can avoid most radar instillations.

    P-40 Bronya (NATO reporting name-Long track)

    The bone was chosen as its ability to fly low and at high speed would keep the crews and aircraft safe as well as make it more likely they could continue their mission. You might ask why the B-52 of the day, which is still in operation (with some upgrades) was spared from the chopping block like the idea for the B-70 and the answer was because it’s huge fuel capacity made it able to operate at lower altitudes longer and upgraded conventional munitions capability made it able strong asset for nuclear deterrence as well as conventional warfare. However the Air Force uses both bombers for different reasons. Nobody is going to ask the Stratofortress to go zipping through a canyon and pop over a valley to hit a target.

    I have the perfect video that displays the capabilities of the B-1 and why even still today these monsters are still considered one of the baddest planes in the arsenal.

    B-1B Lancer terrain following at Edward’s AFB.

    The jet is surprisingly low and if you didn’t know he was coming you would only have a couple very precious seconds to react. That’s why.

    Anyway I could write all day about this plane but I think I’ve said enough for now. 

    Thank you for reading. I hope you get as much out of what I’m doing here as I get out of making these reports. If so I would invite you to join my Patreon. Doing that would help me more than I can describe. I’ve kept it as cheap as possible to become a member. It’s only a $1.00. However a dollar from even half of my Facebook followers would be a life changing amount of money for me and for this page.

    Thank you for all the support over the years. Here’s to many more. 

    -Scott

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