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Taiwan's air force said Friday it was planning to upgrade the island's U.S.-made and indigenous fighter jets to maintain the balance of air power across the Taiwan Strait. The upgrades are aimed at boosting the fighters' performance and avoid a "gap in Taiwan's war-fighting capabilities," the island's semi- official Central News Agency reported Friday. The upgrades would seek to address "the trend of the tipping of the military balance in the Taiwan Strait," the air force reportedly said, without elaborating. On Thursday Defense Minister Kao Hua-chu told lawmakers that the military was considering mothballing the some 60 French-made Mirage models...

Remnants of Iraq Air Force Are FoundBy ROD NORDLAND Published: August 30, 2009 BAGHDAD — Iraqi officials have discovered that they may have a real air force, after all. The Defense Ministry revealed Sunday that it had recently learned that Iraq owns 19 MIG-21 and MIG-23 jet fighters, which are in storage in Serbia. Ministry officials are negotiating with the Serbs to restore and return the aircraft. The Serbian government has tentatively promised to make two of the aircraft available “for immediate use,” according to a news release from the ministry. The rest would be restored on a rush basis,...

MINGORA, Pakistan – Helicopter gunships and mortar teams pounded militant strongholds Wednesday, killing dozens outside emerald mines, the military said, as Taliban reinforcements poured down from their mountain hide-outs and seized homes and government buildings. The army began taking the fight to militants entrenched in both the Swat Valley and in Buner, just 60 miles (100 kilometers) from the capital, as Pakistan's leader prepared to hear demands from President Barack Obama for forceful action from a struggling ally. The latest actions will please Washington, which is urging Pakistan to crack down on militants blamed for rising violence at home and...

WASHINGTON – Afghanistan's interior minister says there may be between 10,000 and 15,000 Taliban fighting inside his country, and the insurgent group is operating across about 17 provinces. Mohammad Hanif Atmar offered a rare estimate of the size of his government's most organized and potent opponent during a visit to Washington. ...

WASHINGTON, Jan. 29, 2009 – Some Air Force fighter pilots may miss out on watching Super Bowl XLIII, but for a worthy cause. They will be flying to protect the skies around Raymond James Stadium during the Feb. 1 game in Tampa, Fla. Airmen flying fighter jets may be visible enforcing the Federal Aviation Administration's temporary flight restriction over the greater Tampa area during the National Football League's championship game, officials said. "America's [air operations center] will be closely monitoring all air activity while the FAA temporary flight restriction is in place," Air Force Col. David Kriner, commander of the...

WASHINGTON, Jan. 11, 2009 – Afghan and coalition forces detained eight suspected militants, including two wanted men, during operations in Afghanistan’s Khost and Kandahar provinces Jan. 9, U.S. military officials in Afghanistan reported. Afghan National Police and coalition forces detained three militants in the first operation, including a wanted Haqqani militant. In Sabari district, about 140 miles southeast of Kabul City, the combined force targeted the Haqqani foreign fighter network netting a militant known to coordinate and facilitate the movement of Arab fighters into the region. The militant also is believed to be in contact with senior Haqqani leaders, planning...

If Russia and Sweden once again will find themselves in a military conflict (last time was 1809, when Sweden lost Finland), a wild stab in the dark of a guess would be that Gripens will play a role in fending off the bear. The SAAB Gripen suffered from some initial problems, but has turned out a very interesting and competent plane. This is, to a large extent, thanks to British BAE Systems. God save the Queen. In order to watch the recent "show off" at Linköping, Sweden, just click the link below.

This is a story about success and failure. It is a story about Iraq, and of something much bigger than Iraq. It is, perhaps, a small look into what makes victory, and defeat. It is a tale of infantrymen, of brave soldiers in dusty alleys a world away. It is a story of generals and strategies, too. But to understand our newfound success there, to know perhaps a little of how we achieved it and most importantly, how to keep it, we need to move away from that Mesopotamian desert and those boots on the ground, and back to a...

Lockheed's F-35 program isn't exactly proceeding as planned Earlier this week, DailyTechreported that the Pentagon is trying to sweep some money under the rug to pay for additional Lockheed F-22 fighter planes. Increased concerns over the reliability and structural soundness of the 30-year-old F-15 have lead to the calls for more of the $132 million USD F-22s.It appears that the old F-15 isn't the only aircraft in the U.S. arsenal that is having problems. The F-35 program is facing setbacks of its own. The F-35 program suffered a serious setback on May 3 when a critical electrical system failure occurred...

Navy Lt. j.g. Bradley Pate thought he was finished. Taliban fighters had ambushed the convoy of his humanitarian-aid team in an Afghan mountain pass, wounding half of the 30-member group Nov. 2, 2006. Pate and the remaining team hunkered down that night, waiting for the next battle. As the sun rose, a mortar shell exploded in the middle of its encampment. Pinned down by rifle and mortar fire, Pate heard the screams of bleeding troops around him. Then he spotted a badly wounded Air Force captain lying in the open. Pate raced out and dragged the captain to relative safety...

'Bin Laden call' to Iraq fighters Osama Bin Laden's last message was an attack on Pakistan's leader A new audio recording purportedly by al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden has urged insurgent groups in Iraq to unify their ranks. "The interest of the Islamic nation surpasses that of a group - it is more important than that of a state," says the message broadcast on al-Jazeera TV. The call comes amid moves by some Sunni groups in Iraq to side with the Iraqi government against al-Qaeda. The identity of the voice on the tape could not be independently confirmed. 'Mistakes' And...

WASHINGTON, Sept. 30, 2007 – Coalition and Iraq forces continued taking the fight to the enemy in a variety of recent operations. Coalition forces killed two terrorists and detained 21 suspected terrorists yesterday and today during operations to disrupt al Qaeda in Iraq networks in the Tigris River Valley. In a village southwest of Samarra, coalition forces conducted several coordinated operations today targeting individuals believed to be close associates of an al-Qaeda in Iraq senior leader. As coalition forces approached, an armed man emerged and maneuvered toward a nearby palm grove. Coalition forces engaged the terrorist, killing him. As the...

Fighters 'seize Pakistan troops' Scores of Pakistani soldiers are missing near the Afghanistan border amid claims from pro-Taleban militants that they have captured 300 men. More than 100 army personnel are unaccounted for, according to officials in the South Waziristan region. A Muslim militant group said it had taken the troops because the government was not honouring a recent peace deal. There has been rising violence in the region in recent months, with at least 60 soldiers and 250 militants killed. Several peace deals between the government and rebels have collapsed. US officials have described the tribal areas near the...

KABUL, Afghanistan - Afghan and U.S.-led coalition troops, using artillery and airstrikes, killed 33 Taliban fighters after the insurgents attacked a police checkpoint in southern Afghanistan, officials said Friday. The militants attacked two police vehicles with gunfire and rocket-propelled grenades. Coalition and Afghan forces responded in what the coalition described as a "sparsely populated area" in Uruzgan province. Gen. Zahir Azimi said 33 Taliban fighters were killed. The coalition reported there were no indications of civilian casualties from the fighting and said no coalition or Afghan forces were killed or wounded. Violence has spiked in Afghanistan in the last several...

KANDAHAR, Afghanistan - Days of fierce fighting with NATO and Afghan forces left Taliban militants in control of one southern Afghan district and battling to take over another Tuesday, officials said. Taliban fighters seized Miya Nishin district in Kandahar province late Monday, provincial police chief Esmatullah Alizai said. Authorities were planning to retake the remote area. In neighboring Uruzgan province's Chora district — home to more than 100,000 people — fighting continued between NATO and Afghan forces and militants who attacked police posts in the province's main town on Saturday. Some officials reported dozens of civilian casualties. "It has been...

MADRID (Reuters) - Spain said on Monday it had arrested 16 people suspected of recruiting Islamist fighters for Iraq and North Africa. The 14 Moroccans and two Algerians were alleged to have indoctrinated others with radical Islamic teachings and about "jihad," or holy war, the government said in a statement. "Moreover, (the group) was allegedly linked with the financing and sending of combatants to different terrorist organisations in North Africa and other countries in conflict like Iraq." Thirteen were arrested in Barcelona and nearby towns, two in Aranjuez, 50 km (30 miles) south of Madrid, and one in the resort...

KUWAIT CITY - Seventy percent of foreign insurgents arrested in Iraq came from Persian Gulf countries via Syria where they were provided with forged passports, an Iraqi intelligence officer said in a published report Wednesday. "They, according to their own confessions, gather in mosques in the said (Gulf) states to travel to Syria using their passports, taking with them phone numbers of individuals waiting for them there," Brig. Gen. Rashid Fleih, the assistant undersecretary for intelligence of Iraq's Interior Ministry, told Kuwait's Al-Qabas daily in an interview. Fleih did not provide more specific details about the alleged insurgents or which...

WASHINGTON, May 13, 2007 – Afghan and coalition forces killed a militant and detained two others at a compound in Afghanistan’s Helmand province during an operation yesterday, U.S. military officials reported. As the forces advanced on the compound, they took fire from inside. They returned fire, killing one militant. The others surrendered and were not harmed, officials said. A search of the compound revealed a cache of several rocket-propelled grenades, pressure plates and other bomb-making materials. The weapons cache was removed to a safe distance and destroyed in place, officials said. Credible information led the combined force to the...

RAMADI — Iraqi Soldiers patrolled the Nazer Canal for weapons caches independent of Coalition support Monday. According to Iraqi Army Maj. Ani, an intelligence officer of 1st Battalion, 1st Brigade, 7th Iraqi Army Division, the mission to find weapons caches was a demonstration of the Iraqi Army’s capability of hunting down the weapons caches of insurgents attacking Ramadi. While most operations are conducted in a joint effort between Iraqi and Coalition forces, the Iraqi Soldiers operated independently in this mission after months learning from their Coalition counterparts. “We’re here today to sweep the banks for caches,” Ani said. “There have...

A film about the lives of Iraqi and foreign fighters in northern Baghdad has won first prize at the Al Jazeera International Documentary festival in the Qatari capital Doha. -snip-Meeting Resistance focuses on eight fighters based in the northern Baghdad suburb of Adhamiya and details their personal and political reasons for their involvement in attacks on US forces. The fighters come from a range of backgrounds. Most are Iraqi, but one man is a Syrian who says he came to Iraq after an appeal from his local mosque to "join the jihad". The directors were given intimate access to the...

Why the Pentagon doesn't want you to know its bombers finally work. Two decades ago in the Washington Monthly, I quipped that U.S. bombers were becoming so few that eventually they would be named after states, like battleships. So, guess what: The Air Force now names its B-2 stealth bombers after states. There's a B-2 christened the Spirit of Georgia, another the Spirit of Alaska, and so on—with no danger of running out of names, because B-2 production stopped at 21. Today, the United States has just 183 bombers in its entire arsenal, versus more than 75,000 at the peak...

Saudi Arabia hails project to reform fighters By David Blair in Riyadh Last Updated: 1:59am BST 02/04/2007 As American jets bombed his last stronghold in the mountains of Afghanistan, Osama bin Laden ordered a young supporter from Saudi Arabia to flee to safety. Aged only 27, the young man had already spent seven years as a "holy warrior" in countries as far flung as the Philippines and Afghanistan. Prince Turki al-Faisal praised the rehabilitation project's contribution to reducing terrorist threats He obeyed his leader's command and retreated over the border into Pakistan - where he was swiftly captured. That was...

RMAF's Sukhois to arrive in May — one year late 15 Feb 2007 Adrian David KUALA LUMPUR: After a one-year delay, the first six Sukhoi Su-30MKM jets will be delivered to the Royal Malaysian Air Force in May. The RMAF ordered 18 of the Russian jet fighters in 2003 in a US$900 million (RM3.24 billion) deal. After India and Vietnam, Malaysia will become one of the largest operators of the high-tech jet. Indonesia has ordered 12, while Thailand is mulling the purchase. Defence industry sources said the RMAF was ready to take delivery of the jets as the crew of...

AUSTRALIA's largest defence project, the $15 billion F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, is now almost certain to go ahead after the US formally ruled out the only viable alternative warplane for the RAAF. The US Deputy Defence Secretary Gordon England has written to Defence Minister Brendan Nelson saying the US will not export the world's most deadly warplane - the F-22 Raptor - to Australia. The US statement ends a growing debate among defence experts about which plane should replace the RAAF's ageing F-111 strike bombers and form the front line of the nation's future air force. It makes it virtually...

China Looks to New Fighters, Sparking Regional Arms Race: Report China has started to develop more advanced fighter jets in a move to compete with the state-of-the-art F-22 U.S. combat aircraft, sparking a regional arms race, according to a recent report. Research is under way to develop the Jian-13 and Jian-14 (or J-13 and J-14) by the Shenyang Aircraft Corporation and the Chengdu Aircraft Company, Agence France-Presse (AFP) quoted the Liberty Times as reporting on Jan. 31. The J-14, which is forecast to be equipped with radar-dodging capability, is scheduled to join the Chinese air force in 2015, an unnamed...

TYNDALL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla., Jan. 31, 2007 – The Continental U.S. North American Aerospace Defense Command Region is stepping up its air patrols in the Miami-Dade area to increase security during Super Bowl XLI activities. Spectators will see the Air Force Demonstration Squadron, the Thunderbirds, fly over Dolphin Stadium Feb. 4 during pregame events and other Air Force fighter jets in the local area during the game. The patrols are a smart, efficient way to protect American lives and resources in the region, said Maj. Gen. Henry C. Morrow, the commander of both 1st Air Force and Continental...

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - The U.S. military said on Monday 93 rebels were killed and 57 captured in a 10-day operation against al Qaeda-linked insurgents northeast of Baghdad. In an unusually detailed video news conference broadcast to journalists in Baghdad from Diyala province, Colonel David Sutherland said Iraqi troops had fought well in the operation and were improving their capabilities every day. He said 25 weapons caches, including around 1,200 Katyusha rockets, had been found during operations dating back to November in the area around a remote village called Turki. Sutherland said U.S. and Iraqi forces had gradually isolated the insurgents...

Army prepares to oust Somali fighters By Mike Pflanz, East Africa Correspondent Last Updated: 12:19am GMT 01/01/2007 Fighting erupted late yesterday in southern Somalia as government troops prepared their final onslaught against Islamist forces who, until last week, controlled most of the country. Fearful residents in the southern town of Jilib reported hearing artillery and gunfire. Thousands have fled to the fields as the Islamists began what is likely to be their last stand against their rivals and their Ethiopian allies. After being pushed out of their stronghold in Mogadishu, an ultra-loyal rump of 3,000 fighters of the Islamic Courts...

Czech Gripens will protect Baltic countries -- press Prague- Czech Swedish-made Gripen fighters will protect Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia, complying with the request by Lithuanian Defence Minister Juozas Olekas addressed to his Czech counterpart Jiri Sedivy on behalf of the Baltic states, Mlada fronta Dnes (MfD) writes. The three countries do not have supersonic aircraft and NATO states take turns in the protection of their airspace, MfD writes. It quotes Sedivy as saying that he told Olekas that the Czech Republic can provide its Gripens for three to four months and that talks about it have been conducted for several...

IAF mulls purchase of French Mirage fighters NEW DELHI, OCT 5 (PTI) The Indian Air Force is exploring purchase of French Mirage fighters to maintain an effective airpower strength as an interim measure in the wake of delays in finalising the contract for buying 126 multi-role Combat Aircraft. "We are in negotiations with France for supply of some number of Mirage-2000-5," Air Chief SP Tyagi told newsmen here. Negotiations had also been revived with Qatar for purchase of 12 Mirage fighters, he said. IAF is taking these emergency measures in the wake of reports that its fighting squardon strength has...

ANCHORAGE, Alaska – American and Canadian fighter planes were launched to intercept a pair of Russian bombers after the bombers came close to Alaska while conducting an exercise, military officials said Friday. The Russian aircraft on Thursday penetrated a 12-mile buffer zone near American airspace, according to the North American Aerospace Defense Command, or NORAD. The bombers never violated U.S. or Canadian airspace, said Maj. Gen. Brett Cairns, NORAD director of operations. Elmendorf Air Force Base in Anchorage sent four F-15s to meet the Russian aircraft, said Master Sgt. Tim Hoffman, a base information officer. Two F-15s intercepted the planes...

Jets to be sold to Mexico, Brazil, pilots trained in Venezuela 11:46 | 28/ 09/ 2006 BUENOS-AIRES, September 28 (RIA Novosti) - Russia's state-owned arms exporter said Thursday it will soon sign deals to export Sukhoi warplanes to Mexico and Brazil, and will open helicopter maintenance and pilot training centers in Venezuela. Rosoboronexport's regional department head, Sergei Ladygin, said: "We hope that Sukhoi planes will soon appear in Latin American countries." Speaking on the sidelines of a military exhibition in Argentina, SINPRODE-2006, Ladygin said Rosoboronexport will also offer a modernized version of the Mig-29 Fulcrum fighter to Mexico and Brazil....

US outraged as Pakistan frees Taliban fighters By Isambard Wilkinson in Peshawar (Filed: 15/09/2006) Pakistan's credibility as a leading ally in the war on terrorism was called into question last night when it emerged that President Pervez Musharraf's government had authorised the release from jail of thousands of Taliban fighters caught fighting coalition forces in Afghanistan. Five years after American-led coalition forces overthrew the Taliban during Operation Enduring Freedom, United States officials have been horrified to discover that thousands of foreign fighters detained by Pakistan after fleeing the battleground in Afghanistan have been quietly released and allowed to return to...

Pakistan bows to pressure and arrests Taliban fighters (Filed: 16/08/2006) Pakistan reacted to pressure from Britain and other Western powers yesterday by arresting dozens of Taliban fighters suspected of attacking British soldiers across the border in Afghanistan. At least 27 suspected Taliban warriors were arrested at the private al-Khair Hospital in Quetta where some were receiving medical treatment for wounds. Meanwhile in the port city of Karachi, police arrested a suspected Islamic militant accused of training religious students to become suicide bombers and deploying them against coalition troops in Afghanistan. There have been months of diplomatic wrangling over Pakistan's apparent...

WASHINGTON, Aug. 10, 2006 – Coalition soldiers killed 15 extremists Aug. 8 during a firefight at a provincial reconstruction team base in the Kamdesh district of Afghanistan’s Nuristan province, military officials reported. Two U.S. soldiers and one Afghan policeman suffered minor wounds when 30 insurgents attacked the base with small arms and rockets. Coalition forces responded with small arms and mortars. The wounded soldiers and police officer were treated on the scene and returned to duty. The coalition base was not damaged. “These extremists will never succeed in overcoming coalition and Afghan security forces,” Army Col. Thomas Collins, a coalition...

Husseiniya fire fighters move into new facility Story and photo by Norris Jones Gulf Region Central District US Army Corps of Engineers The Husseiniya firemen are proud of their new equipment and the training which they have received. They are now able to battle fires and respond to emergencies better than ever before. Baghdad, Iraq -- Husseiniya city officials and fire fighters in north Baghdad Province hosted a ceremony recently marking the opening of a new $1.1 million, three-story fire station that will benefit the city’s 450,000 residents. The 925-square meter concrete structure features five bays; three for ladder...

BAQUBA, Iraq (Reuters) - Iraqi and U.S. troops battled Shi'ite militiamen in a village northeast of Baghdad on Thursday, and witnesses and police said U.S. helicopters bombed orchards to flush out gunmen hiding in the palm groves. Iraqi security officials said Iranian fighters had been captured in the fighting, in which the commander of an Iraqi quick reaction force and two soldiers were shot dead by a sniper. They did not say how the Iranians had been identified. The U.S. military had no immediate comment. Police said the fighting was still going on at 6 p.m. (1400 GMT) in the...

WASHINGTON, June 28, 2006 – A coalition soldier was killed and three others were injured today when their vehicle struck a land mine in Afghanistan's Helmand province, and Afghan and coalition forces today killed 12 terrorists at a Taliban compound, military officials reported. The dead and wounded soldiers' uparmored vehicle struck a land mine likely left behind from 25 years of war, according to Combined Forces Command Afghanistan officials. "We sincerely regret the loss of our fellow soldier today; his sacrifice will not be forgotten," Army Maj. Gen. Benjamin C. Freakley, commander of Combined Joint Task Force -76, said. "Our...

Saudi fighters 'are leading the surge in attacks on British troops' By Thomas Harding, Defence Correspondent, and Max Benitz (Filed: 31/05/2006) Foreign terrorists, led by fighters from Saudi Arabia, are behind an upsurge in attacks against British troops in Basra, military sources said yesterday. As the Army suffered the highest number of fatal attacks in a month since the invasion of Iraq in 2003, commanders on the ground are concerned at the level of sophistication and ferocity of the assaults. L/Cpl Paul Farrelly Their anxiety was underlined when the Ministry of Defence named two soldiers killed in the latest attacks...

Afghan, Coalition Forces Kill 24 Enemy Fighters American Forces Press Service WASHINGTON, May 24, 2006 – Coalition forces killed 24 enemy fighters in Afghanistan yesterday, U.S. military officials said. Afghan National Army and coalition forces battled terrorists for six hours in the Tarin Kowt district of Uruzgan province yesterday evening, military officials said. One Afghan National Police officer and four Afghan soldiers were killed battling the enemy fighters. Additional Afghan soldiers and police were wounded and were taken to a nearby medical treatment facility. No report was available on their condition. The engagement started when a joint combat patrol of...

BAGRAM AIR BASE, Afghanistan, May 21, 2006 – Afghan and coalition forces killed 20 enemy fighters during a May 19 battle in southern Afghanistan, military officials here reported today. Combined Forces Command Afghanistan officials reported yesterday that a U.S. servicemember was killed and six others were wounded in the attack. A command statement today said seven U.S. servicemembers were wounded in the firefight in addition to the fatality. About 50 fighters attempted to ambush a joint coalition force patrolling in the Cahar Cineh district in Uruzgan province, officials said. Afghan and coalition forces repelled the attack with small-arms fire, killing...

BAGRAM AIR BASE, Afghanistan, May 19, 2006 – A series of continuous offensive operations May 17 and yesterday across eastern and southern Afghanistan left 61 Taliban extremists dead and 20 others captured, military officials here reported today. Afghan National Police and coalition forces killed a reported 60 enemy fighters and captured 20 during a battle in the village of Musa Qalah in Helmand province May 17, Copmbined Forces Command Afghanistan officials said. The joint force pursued the fighters after receiving reports of a large enemy force moving from Musa Qalah. Sixteen police were killed and 20 were wounded in the...

BAGRAM AIR BASE, Afghanistan, May 8, 2006 – A coalition air strike killed four enemy extremists and destroyed a truck and a cave complex today in the Bermel district of Afghanistan's Paktika province, military officials reported. Other insurgents may be buried in the rubble, officials said. Prior to the strike, a joint combat team of Afghan National Army and U.S. ground forces saw people loading a truck near the cave and determined they were moving rockets from a cave complex and that the activity was linked to recent rocket attacks on a nearby coalition base. Close-air support was used to...

BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan – Coalition forces killed 15 to 20 enemy fighters in Helmand Province Saturday during operations to rid the area of enemy influence. A Coalition patrol in the Sangin District observed several men carrying AK-47 rifles and RPG-7 grenade launchers moving with the intent to set up an ambush. After positively determining the activity as enemy operations and confirming no civilians were in the vicinity, Coalition forces effectively attacked the men. No Coalition casualties or damage were reported. “Afghan armed forces and their Coalition partners stand ready to defeat these terrorists at every turn,” said Army Lt. Col....

BAGRAM AIR BASE, Afghanistan, March 29, 2006 – Gunmen killed one U.S. servicemember and a coalition servicemember from another country during an enemy attack on a forward operating base in the southern Afghanistan province of Helmand today, military officials reported. One U.S. servicemember, three other coalition servicemembers, and an Afghan National Army soldier were injured in the attack. At least a dozen enemy insurgents reportedly were killed when coalition forces counterattacked with combined arms, including close-air support. "Coalition forces fought bravely and defeated a significant enemy element," Army Brig. Gen. Anthony J. Tata, deputy commander of Combined Joint Task Force...

BAGRAM AIR BASE, Afghanistan, March 1, 2006 – A U.S. servicemember was killed and two were wounded in offensive operations in Afghanistan's Uruzgan province yesterday, military officials reported. Seven suspected Taliban fighters were captured in the engagement, in which coalition forces attacked the enemy with small-arms fire. An improvised explosive device damaged one coalition vehicle during the engagement, which took place near Tarin Kowt. The wounded servicemembers were evacuated for medical treatment at a nearby facility. Officials reported they were in stable condition. Names are being withheld pending notification of next of kin. "We are deeply saddened by the loss...

11/16/2005 - SOUTHWEST ASIA (AFPN) -- Air Force F-15 Eagles, F-16 Fighting Falcons and MQ-1 Predators flew air strikes against anti-Iraqi forces near the Iraq-Syria border in support of Operation Steel Curtain. After Marines swept into Ubaydi, a town near Karabilah, Nov. 14, they came in contact with anti-Iraqi forces. The F-15s flew in and dropped precision-guided bombs against enemy forces in a grove of trees. A Predator unmanned aerial vehicle fired a Hellfire missile at a building from where enemy forces were shooting and successfully drove them from the location. Later the same day, F-16s and a Predator responded...

WASHINGTON, Nov. 16, 2005 – U.S. Air Force F-15s, F-16s and Predator unmanned aerial vehicles made air strikes against insurgent fighters near the Iraq-Syria border Nov. 14 in support of Operation Steel Curtain. After ground forces with Company E, 2nd Battalion, 1st Marines, swept into Ubaydi, Iraq, a town near Karabilah, and came in contact with enemy fighters, F-15s were called in and delivered precision-guided bombs against enemy forces in a grove of trees. A Predator fired a Hellfire missile at a building from where enemy forces were shooting and successfully drove them from their location. Later that day, F-16s...

Japan Scrambles Fighters 30 Times to Repel Chinese Wednesday, November 09, 2005 TOKYO — Japanese fighter jets have been scrambled 30 times to turn away Chinese planes approaching Japan's airspace in the last six months, more than twice the 13 times in the same period last year, officials said Wednesday. The increased defensive posture reflects the growing tensions between Japan and China, which are squabbling over interpretations of their wartime past, undersea gas deposits, and ownership of East China Sea islands. An Air Self Defense Force spokesman said Japan's fighter jets had scrambled 30 times in response to what were...

End of an Era, the F-14 tomcat makes its final public appearance. VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (NNS) -- The venerable F-14 Tomcat took a final bow with a boom at its last air show Sept. 16-18 at Naval Air Station Oceana, Va. The classic Northrup Grumman fighter jet that rose to prominence in the 1986 hit film "Top Gun" and has worn U.S. Navy colors since its first test flight in 1970 attracted a legion of fans from around the world at its public goodbye. “It’s basically a bittersweet day for us,” said Lt. Cortney Kinna, an F-14 naval flight officer...