F-16 Iran Middle East Air

More U.S. Combat Aircraft Heading To Middle East Ahead Of Expected Iranian Attack On Israel (Updated)

Iran has vowed to attack Israel to avenge the death of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh who was assassinated Wednesday in Tehran.

Latest Articles

Baba Yaga Drone Ukraine

Ukraine’s “Baba Yaga” Drones Now Appear Capable Of Launching Guided Munitions

Making Ukraine's large multi-rotor industrial drones capable of launching guided munitions at targets behind enemy lines would certainly be a major capability upgrade.

More NATO members are now 'read into' top-secret Special Access Programs (SAP) related to the Joint Strike Fighter as part of a broader push to improve information sharing and interoperability.

More Top Secret F-35 Stealth Fighter Data Given To NATO Members

Giving NATO allies a deeper understanding of the F-35 will help them better use the jets, including together with fourth-generation fighters.

The Army has laid out a requirement for an AIM-120 AMRAAM-like interceptor that is the same general size as an AIM-9X SIdewinder for its Enduring Shield air defense system.

Army Seeking AIM-9X-Sized Surface-To-Air Missile With AIM-120-Like Range

The Army's Enduring Shield SAM system is set to use AIM-9X first, but the service wants a new missile to drastically expand its capabilities.

Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh was killed in Tehran by a bomb smuggled into the guesthouse where he was staying, according to The New York Times.

Planted Bomb Was Used To Kill Hamas Leader In Tehran: Report

While the details of the assassination remain murky, Iran appears to be preparing for what could be a massive vengeance strike on Israel.

Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company - Fort Worth - Chris Hanoch Subject: Document F-35 production line from crane monorail FP#: 20-16433 POC: Shane Nicholson Other info: Monorail, crane, F-35 production line; Brett Ashworth This image is public release approved per Angel DelCueto on 05/05/2021

Building The F-35 – One Of The Most Advanced Machines Ever Made

Branded Content: From assembly to getting airborne for first flight, this is the story of F-35 stealth fighter production.

The Air Force Special Operations Command has released its report on the cause of the crash of a CV-22 Osprey off the coast of Japan last November, which killed eight crew. The accident investigation attributes the mishap to a catastrophic failure of one of the tiltrotor’s gearboxes and also points to decisions made by the pilot as a significant contributing factor. The crash had already led to all V-22s across the U.S. Marine Corps, Air Force, and Navy being grounded for more than three months, an order that was lifted in March.

CV-22 Osprey Crash In Japan Was Caused By Gearbox Failure

An accident investigation board has released its findings into the fatal crash of a CV-22 off the Japanese coast last year.

An US Air Force AC-130J Ghostrider gunship recently used its 30mm and 105mm to help sink a decommissioned amphibious warship during an exercise, which comes amid a larger discussion about the relevance of these aircraft in future higher-end operations.

AC-130J Ghostrider Hammers Amphibious Warship During Rare Appearance At Sinking Exercise

An AC-130 brought its 105mm howitzer and 30mm chain gun to bear on the ex-USS Dubuque during the RIMPAC 2024 exercise.

Ukraine F-16s

F-16s Arrive In Ukraine: Report

The arrival of F-16s would mark a moment long pined for by Ukrainian officials and the country's beleaguered air arm.

Composite image from Navy's Silent Swarm 2024 event

Silent Swarm Exercise Accelerates Navy’s Path To Distributed Electronic Warfare Future

The Navy recently experimented with hundreds of electronic warfare technologies mounted on aerial drones and swarms of uncrewed boats.

Latest

Demonstrators wave flags and hold pictures of the leader of the Palestinian militant Hamas group, Ismail Haniyeh, (C) and senior leader Saleh al-Arouri during a protest on July 31, 2024 in Beirut's Burj al-Barajneh camp for Palestinian refugees, denouncing his killing. Hamas said on July 31 its political leader Ismail Haniyeh was killed in an Israeli strike in Iran, where he was attending the swearing-in of the new president, and vowed the act "will not go unanswered".

Claims Swirl Around How Israel Assassinated Hamas Leader In Tehran (Updated)

Israel has various ways to assassinate high-value targets, even in Iran, including urban warfare drones, long-range missiles, and operatives.

USAF aircraft flying in formation

Colonel Tasked With Testing Future Of Air Dominance Talks Candidly About Progress And Challenges

We talk in-depth with the 53rd Wing's commander about how his team is racing to turn future air warfare concepts, including Collaborative Combat Aircraft, into reality.

Drone Hunter T Shirt War Zone

Commemorate F-15E Strike Eagle’s Historic Drone Hunt With This Galaga-Inspired T-Shirt

Just like any ace Galaga player, F-15E crews had to manage timing, limited missiles, and agility to stop hordes of Iranian kamikaze drones.

The world awaits Israel's response after a deadly Hezbollah rocket attack on a soccer field.

World Awaits Israel’s Response To Deadly Hezbollah Rocket Attack That Hit Soccer Field

A major effort is underway behind the scenes to keep Israel from launching a major ground operation into Southern Lebanon or hitting civilian infrastructure.

Three German Eurofighter EF2000s have completed a record-breaking endurance flight for the multirole fighter. Remaining in the air for a total of 10 hours 31 minutes, the trio of combat aircraft flew from Japan to Hawaii today, supported by aerial refueling tankers that included KC-135 Stratotankers operated by private aerospace firm Metrea, a contractor-owned and operated aerial refueling business that recently acquired of 14 KC-135s from the French Air and Space Force.

German Eurofighters Make Record-Breaking Flight With Help From Private Aerial Refueling Company

Three of the German fighters were airborne for more than 10 hours during a flight between Japan and Hawaii with the help of Metrea aerial refueling company.

A 1950s civil defense shelter

Bunker Talk: Let’s Talk About All The Things We Did And Didn’t Cover This Week

Talk amongst yourselves.

NATO has selected AIrbus, Leonardo and Lockheed Martin Sikorsky to provide concept studies for the Next Generation Rotor Craft.

NATO Selects Three Companies For Next-Generation Rotorcraft Concept Study

Airbus Helicopters, Lockheed Martin Sikorsky, and Leonardo are now on contract to help NATO pick a new helicopter.

A new picture offering the best look to date at a Ukrainian MiG-29 Fulcrum fighter armed with GBU-39/B Small Diameter Bombs has disclosed the use of a special pylon with a mysterious feature in front.

First Look At Mystery Weapon Pylon Ukrainian MiG-29s Use To Carry Small Diameter Bombs

A picture has emerged of an SDB-armed Ukrainian MiG-29 with a previously unseen pylon with an interesting feature.

Russia is gaining ground in its effort to capture the key logistics hub of Pokrovsk in Donetsk Oblast.

Ukraine Situation Report: Russia Advancing Toward Key Logistics Hub

The Donetsk Oblast city of Pokrovsk, a bulwark against a Ukrainian collapse in the region, is a main target of Russian forces.

Greece has made good on its promise to buy F-35 stealth fighters, confirming today that it will buy an initial batch of 20 of the aircraft at a cost of around $3.5 billion. The decision is an important step in the modernization of the Hellenic Air Force, which has recently inducted other new combat aircraft types, while plans to retire older jets have also been unveiled. The move also has a particular resonance in terms of Greece’s tense relations with regional rival Turkey, which was booted out of the F-35 program, after buying Russian-made S-400 air defense systems.

Greece Buying F-35s Widens Qualitative Gap With Turkey

F-35s will fly alongside Rafales and F-16s in a modernized Hellenic Air Force.

F-15EX and J16, both two seaters, but one uses the second crewman in a different capacity than the traditional weapon system officer role.

USAF Should Look At China’s Future Multi-Crew Fighter Model For F-15EX

The F-15EX's currently empty rear cockpit needs to be taken advantage of by adding a new kind of second crewmen, an Air Mission Commanding Officer.

Chinese H-6-series aircraft have flown off the coast of Alaska for what appears to be the first time in an important show of force along with Russian Tu-95 Bear bombers.

Chinese H-6 Missile Carrier Jets Appear For The First Time Off Alaska (Updated)

The arrival of Chinese H-6s off American shores is a major, but not unexpected landmark in China's power projection evolution.

Ukraine's low-cost acoustic drone detection network is gaining increasing interest from the U.S. and allies.

Ukraine’s Acoustic Drone Detection Network Eyed By U.S. As Low-Cost Air Defense Option

Ukraine's network of nearly 10,000 acoustic sensors has been highly effective and the U.S. Army is interested in copying it.

A C-130J on the production line in Marietta

C-130 Factory: How Iconic Hercules Airlifters Are Born

Branded Content: Inside the Marietta C-130 plant, the longest-running military aircraft production line in history.

The United Kingdom is advancing the build of a new fighter demonstrator as part of its Tempest next-generation air combat program. The demonstrator, so far only known as the Flying Technology Demonstrator, is planned to fly within the next three years and its progress in an important boost for the Tempest stealth fighter — and wider Future Combat Air System (FCAS) — program, the future of which has recently begun to be questioned in some quarters.

Tempest Stealth Fighter Flying Demonstrator Takes Shape

For the first time, we have gotten a look at the Flying Technology Demonstrator that will feed into the Tempest fighter program.

The US Army is eyeing adding the SM-6 to its air and missile defense arsenal, in addition to work already being done to field it in the long-range strike role.

SM-6 Eyed As New Surface-To-Air Interceptor For The Army

SM-6, which the Army is already fielding to strike targets on land and at sea, could help bolster the service's strained air defense branch.

Must Read Features

Ukraine carried out two long-range drone attacks in Russia, striking a refinery and an air base.

Ukraine Situation Report: Large Two-Pronged Drone Attack Struck Russian Refinery, Airbase

Israel’s New 767 “Air Force One” Has Flown Its First Prime Minister Transport Mission

Secret Service Wants New Sniper Rifles

Trump’s Nebulous “Iron Dome” Pledge Actually Reflects Very Real Homeland Threats

SEE MORE

The War Zone — also known by the shorthand TWZ — has become an essential resource for the defense industry, the national security community, and the interested public at large since it was launched in 2016.

 

From its early beginnings to the present day, TWZ’s purpose remains the same.

 

The site stands at the nexus of military technology, strategy, and foreign policy. As a full-spectrum defense news and analysis website, TWZ covers the air, sea, land, space, and cyber domains of warfare, with an infusion of geopolitical context and technological analysis to offer readers deeper, yet easy-to-consume, insights than what they will find anywhere else….

More About Us

The TWZ Team