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The Pentagon spent $5 billion developing a carrier-based stealth bomber shaped like a triangle — nicknamed ‘The Flying Dorito’ — before Dick Cheney killed the program because nobody could tell him what it would cost. The Navy, Marines, and Air Force wanted a combined 1,258 aircraft; they got zero, the largest contract cancellation in Pentagon history, and a legal battle that lasted 30 years.

The A-12 Avenger II: The Rise and Crash Landing 

A-12 Avenger II Flying Dorito. Image Credit: Creative Commons.

A-12 Avenger II Model. Image Credit: Creative Commons.

Former SEAL and Naval Academy graduate Dan O’Shea drops the first ‘Into The Lion’s Den’ episode Monday with Roy Hallums. Hallums was buried alive for 18 months in Iraq.

The post MONDAY: It’s Finally Here – ‘Into The Lion’s Den’ Podcast – Don’t Miss Explosive First Episode! appeared first on Armed Forces Press.

Efforts to modernise the Republic of China Air Force’s F-CK Ching-kuo lightweight fighters with next generation avionics and weaponry have continued to make progress, with a new active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar having begun flight testing. Fighters enhanced to the new standard have been designated F-CK-1C “Super Ching-kuo.” The radar was developed by the Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology (CSIST) under the “Eagle Project,” and is based on cutting edge Gallium Nitride array technologies.

OneArc executive Oliver Arup detailed ongoing developments – VBS4 and Flowstate – during the ITEC exhibition in London.

The British Armed Forces on March 27 received the last of 48 F-35B fighter aircraft ordered from the United States, drawing attention and criticism to the highly protracted timeline of deliveries which has left the country’s combat aviation fleet significantly under strength. The milestone delivery has occurred years after the first orders were placed in 2006, and over a decade after the first of the aircraft was delivered.

Russian state media outlet TASS has cited local analysts evaluating the capabilities of the Su-35 air superiority fighter, and in particular the outstandingly high levels of combat testing to which it has been put through primarily during its operations in the Ukrainian theatre.

Russian government sources have elaborated on the significance of the delivery of 100,000 tons of Russian oil to Cuba in late March 2026, which directly challenged the U.S. Armed Forces’ blockade of the country, and marked the latest development in seven decades of strategic cooperation between Moscow and the Caribbean Island nation. When the tanker Anatoly Kolodkin docked on March 30, Cuba had not received an oil shipment for three months, which had caused a crisis that crippled the country’s economy.

The Army is looking for an autonomous, unmanned ground vehicle (UGV) to supply frontline troops and evacuate wounded personnel across “the most dangerous and logistically complex” segment of the battlefield, according to a government notice posted Thursday.
“The last tactical mile” is the final space between support units and forward lines where equipment, ammunition, supplies and casualties pass “under the greatest threat from enemy observation and fires,” officials wrote.

Maj. Gen. Christopher Niemi has been nominated to serve as the Air Force’s first-ever chief modernization officer as part of a reorganization of the service’s Air Force Futures.
The Trump administration announced Niemi’s nomination for promotion to three-star general on Wednesday. If confirmed by lawmakers, he would serve in a dual-hatted position as both the Air Force’s deputy chief of staff for strategy, design and requirements and the service’s official chief modernization officer, according to an Air Force spokesperson.

The Navy is planning a major change in how enlisted sailors are evaluated for promotion, directing leaders to consider how good a sailor is at technical job skills over their community work or involvement in organizations like the Chief Petty Officer Mess.
To move up in the ranks, sailors are currently assessed not only by their job skills, but also for volunteer work and for “collateral duties” outside their primary rate. Membership in the First Class or Chief Petty Officer Mess is also considered for more senior enlisted sailors.