The United States plans to slash the number of fighter jets and warships it provides to NATO in Europe, the New York Times reported on Thursday. The reported cutbacks come as European nations race to bolster their defense capacities since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 sparked fears that Moscow could attack a NATO country. France 24’s Rochelle Ferguson-Bouyahi takes a closer look. Source link
The effective collapse of the Future Combat Air System (FCAS) fighter jet programme is a major setback for European defence cooperation. France, Germany and Spain have spent nearly a decade trying to develop what was intended to become Europe’s premier next-generation combat aircraft, only for the programme to succumb to disputes over leadership, the distribution of work and intellectual property. Yet Europeans shouldn’t be surprised. The history of European combat aviation is littered with programmes that struggled under the weight of competing national ambitions. In this respect, FCAS looks less like an extraordinary failure than the latest chapter in a recurring story. The more important question is not why FCAS has run into trouble, but rather what its collapse reveals about Europe’s ability to generate and sustain the military capabilities it will need in a more dangerous world. Adversaries are now investing heavily in integrated and layered air defences encompassing long-range missiles, electronic warfare capabilities and increasingly sophisticated sensors. Maintaining the ability to penetrate defended airspace in future conflicts will require a step change in …
By Andreas Rinke and Tim Hepher BERLIN/PARIS, June 8 (Reuters) – The leaders of Germany and France have agreed to scrap a landmark project to develop and build a new-generation fighter jet, officials said on Monday, bowing to industrial rivalries over Europe’s most ambitious defence programme. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and French President Emmanuel Macron discussed the troubled project on the sidelines of the EU-Western Balkans summit in Montenegro last week and concluded that there was no prospect of breaking months of deadlock between arms firms involved in the plan, German officials said. Merz has therefore advised Macron not to pursue the construction of a joint fighter aircraft any further, they said. Macron’s office said the two had discussed the project at length and regretted that the main industry partners, European aerospace group Airbus, which represents Germany and Spain, and France’s Dassault Aviation, had not been able to reach an agreement. The decision to end the core pillar of Europe’s largest defence project comes at a time when Western military officials have warned of a …
Joseph Edgar Foreman is still getting high. In a makeshift greenroom made from curtains at the Venetian Hotel in Las Vegas, Afroman, as he’s better known, inhales a blunt rolled by his videographer, who’s wearing a tight cocktail dress and clear sky-high heels. The 51-year-old rapper seems unconcerned that several thousand people are waiting for him, in a room far larger than the dive bars he’s been playing over the past two decades. Foreman is wearing the same American Flag ensemble that he donned during his recent appearance in court (and now wears everywhere). In 2022, police officers raided his home in Winchester, Ohio, on suspicion of drugs and kidnapping. They found nothing except a jar filled with “green leafy vegetation,” THC wax, pipes, and more than $5,000 in cash. Following the raid, Foreman released a series of songs mocking the cops, rapping about having sex with their wives and their receding hairlines, among other humiliations. Seven of the officers sued him for $4 million for defamation and invasion of privacy. Foreman won, both the …
The military aviation and defense news blog The Aviationist has spent years tracking mysterious aircraft activity around U.S. restricted airspace. Its latest report highlights a thermal image that may reveal a previously unseen next-generation stealth fighter jet design featuring cranked-kite wings and canards near Area 51. “Had to update this composite image with the latest mysterious aircraft. We have reported on all of them over the years, starting 12 years ago with the Amarillo and Wichita sightings, then the January 2026 image by Uncanny Expeditions, and now the most recent one by Project Fear,” The Aviationist wrote on X. Had to update this composite image with the latest mysterious aircraft. We have reported on all of them over the years, starting 12 years ago with the Amarillo and Wichita sightings, then the January 2026 image by Uncanny Expeditions, and now the most recent one by Project Fear.… pic.twitter.com/d7AeMwI6SO — The Aviationist (@TheAviationist) June 5, 2026 The Aviationist cited a thermal image shared by the Project Fear YouTube channel earlier this week. The Aviationist reached out …
A Mansfield native was flying to Chicago when he jumped into action to restrain an unruly passenger who attempted to open an emergency exit door.Mansfield native Josh Longood was heading home to Chicago from his brother’s bachelor’s party in Puerto Rico May 31 when another passenger allegedly assaulted a flight attendant and attempted to open an emergency exit door on the Frontier flight.https://www.instagram.com/longood135/ (Image: Instagram) A former MMA fighter has revealed how he stepped in to save the day after a fellow passenger allegedly attempted to open an emergency exit door mid-flight. Josh Longood was travelling home to Chicago following his brother’s bachelor party in Puerto Rico on 31 May when another passenger allegedly assaulted a flight attendant and tried to force open the emergency exit door aboard the Frontier aircraft. The 37 year old Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt swiftly leapt into action, deploying his martial arts expertise to subdue the man for approximately 10 minutes — before being called upon a second time after the passenger broke free from his restraints. Josh kept him …
WASHINGTON — The F-15 fighter that was shot down over southwestern Iran last month and set off a dangerous rescue mission was probably struck by a Chinese-made shoulder-launched missile, three people with knowledge of the matter told NBC News. Subscribe to read this story ad-free Get unlimited access to ad-free articles and exclusive content. In the early days of the conflict, China also may have provided Iran with a long-range early-warning radar that spots stealth aircraft that are meant to evade detection, according to one of the people and a U.S. official with knowledge of the matter. U.S. officials are still investigating the circumstances around the shootdown of the American F-15E Strike Eagle in April, the sources said. It was the first time in decades that a U.S. fighter was downed by enemy fire. It’s not clear when the military equipment was handed over. But Iran’s use of weapons made in China complicates Americans’ relationship with Beijing at a time when President Donald Trump has sought China’s help in ending the conflict. Negotiations to end …
The Pentagon released another batch of previously classified UFO files, including military videos of unidentified aerial phenomena, saying the material is intended to provide “unprecedented transparency” despite offering no evidence of alien life. Source link
Get the inside track from Roisin O’Connor with our free weekly music newsletter Now Hear This Get our free music newsletter Now Hear This Get our free music newsletter Now Hear This Former Little Mix star Jesy Nelson “cannot believe” that her twins have turned one: “What a milestone to reach.” The singer, 34, announced earlier this year that her twins Ocean Jade and Story Monroe Nelson were diagnosed SMA1 (spinal muscular atrophy), a genetic condition which causes progressive muscle wastage. On Friday, Nelson posted a heartfelt video featuring the poem “Welcome To Holland” by Emily Perl Kingsley, which addresses the experience of raising a child with a disability. In an accompanying caption, she described her twins as the “strongest most resilient little fighters I’ve ever known”. She wrote: “I cannot believe it has been a whole year since having my beautiful baby girls. They have been through so much. There will never be enough words to describe just how incredible they actually are. My tiny little super humans. The strongest, most resilient little fighters …
JERUSALEM, May 3 (Reuters) – Israel gave final approval for a plan to purchase two new combat squadrons of F-35 and F-15IA advanced fighter aircraft from Lockheed Martin and Boeing in a deal worth tens of billions of dollars, the defence ministry said on Sunday. The deal, approved by Israel’s Ministerial Committee on Procurement, is a first step in a 350 billion shekel ($119 billion) plan to bolster Israel’s military and “strengthen readiness ahead of a demanding decade for Israeli security,” it said. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said much of this expanded defence budget will be to produce munitions in Israel and not be dependent on foreign countries. Israel, he noted, will also develop “groundbreaking” aircraft. The ministry added that the new squadrons will serve as a cornerstone of the military’s long-term force development, addressing regional threats and preserving Israel’s strategic air superiority. “Alongside immediate wartime procurement needs, we have a responsibility to act now to secure the IDF’s military edge ten years from now and beyond,” said ministry Director General Amir Baram, referring to …
