Combat aircraft

6 HEADLINE NEWS

VMFA-121 ‘Green Knights’ deploy with

F-35B, plus B-21 testing to take place at

Edwards AFB

8 US NEWS

US defense budget explained and

USAF launches Nellis adversary

competition

20 WORLD NEWS

News from around the globe including

Canada’s announcement of its future

 ghter candidates, plus all the latest

military losses

16 THE BRIEFING

Combat Aircraft’s regular column by

Robert Beckhusen, taking a look behind

the headlines — this month detailing

recent aerial intercepts

26 THE PILOT CRISIS

Joseph Zeman examines the US Air

Force’s pilot retention dilemma, and

provides an opinion on what needs to be

done...

30 F-35 — OUT OF THE SHADOWS

The Royal Netherlands Air Force has been

 ying a pair of F-35As from Edwards AFB

since January 2015. Frank Crébas/Bluelife

Aviation  nds out how the journey

has been to date and about how the

Lightning II shapes up in dog ghts

36 LANCERS IN THE DEPOT

At Tinker AFB, Michael Keaveney sees

how the USAF maintains its B-1B Lancer

 eet, a type that attracts one of its

biggest servicing bills

40 EAGLE AT FULL THROTTLE

Jamie Hunter reviews the status of the

F-15 Eagle and its many operators, and

 nds a program that is looking towards

new orders

54 BACK TO THE BALTICS

The Aeronautica Militare has once again

deployed Euro ghters to the Baltic to

cover the enduring air policing mission

in the region amid renewed tensions, as

Giovanni Colla and Remo Guidi report

58 PRO’S ZONE

Often overshadowed by carrier-based

aviation, land-based maritime patrol and

reconnaissance is every bit as important

for the US Navy. Ivan Voukadinov visits

NAS Jacksonville and VP-30 ‘Pro’s Nest’

— a squadron that’s been in the training

business for 58 years

IN THE NEWS

62

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ON THE COVER:

A rare air-to-air shot of the Russian Navy’s

newest fi ghter — the Su-30SM. The type was

recently involved in in-fl ight refueling training

from Yeysk. Dmitriy Pichugin

COVER STORY PAGE 62

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INSIDEMay 2018 • Vol 19 • No 5

65 THE ‘RED FLAG’ EVOLUTION

Norman Graf attends Exercise ‘Red

Flag’ and  nds how planners remain

mindful of national strategies as

this important exercise seeks to stay

relevant

68 NEXT-GEN TRAINING

AUSTRALIAN-STYLE

A fresh approach to training centered

around the potent Pilatus PC-21 is

giving the Royal Australian Air Force

the edge it needs to usher in a new

generation of pilots, as Michael

Serenc discovers

72 OHIO ‘STINGERS’

The 112th FS has been celebrating its

100th anniversary while maintaining

a busy schedule both at home and

on the road as one of the Air National

Guard’s premier  ghter squadrons.

Exclusive photos by Jim Haseltine

82 GAME-CHANGING

COMMAND AND CONTROL?

Saab has  own its all-new ‘swing-role

surveillance’ aircraft, the impressive

GlobalEye, as Jamie Hunter reports

from Linköping

86 RUSSIAN FIGHTERS

In the  nal instalment of our review

of  ghter aircraft in Russian service,

we turn to the Su-33, Su-35 and

Su-

94 CUTTING EDGE

Combat Aircraft’s monthly column

reporting from the front line of

aerospace technology, by David Axe

96 FLASHBACK

Our regular feature looking at

squadrons and types that are gone

but not forgotten — this month it’s

the turn of VF-1 ‘Wolfpack’ and the

F-14A Tomcat

‘FLANKERS’ AND TANKERS

Dmitriy Pichugin had exclusive access to the

recent air-to-air refueling training conducted

by the Russian Navy

80

‘STINGERS’ IN THE BALTICS

At the beginning of January, a dozen 112th FS F-16s

deployed from Toledo to Ämari Air Base in Estonia

as part of a Theater Security Package in support

of Operation ‘Atlantic Resolve’. Giovanni Colla and

Remo Guidi were granted exclusive access to their

deployment

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