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First Blue Angel Super Hornet while it was still in the paint shop

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The first Super Hornet painted in Blue Angels color while it was still in the paint shop.

200504-N-DG679-001
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (May 4, 2020) Fleet Readiness Center Southeast’s paint shop completes the first F/A-18 Super Hornet with the Blue Angels signature paint as the jet awaits transport to Boeing Global Services Cecil Field for final assembly. The Super Hornet will become the fourth Boeing platform to be used by the Blue Angels flight demonstration team.
(U.S. Navy Photo by Toiete Jackson/Released)

123rd Fighter Squadron will be the first operational F-15EX unit

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The U.S. Air Force has announced the formal training and operational units for the F-15EX on Aug. 14.

F-15EX decals affixed to F-15QA4 jet in Building 67, Final Assembly_St. Louis, MO. Purpose of the photo is to show aircraft readiness to our USAF customer (F-15EX contract award). MSF20-0024 Series.

Photo: Boeing

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B-52H tests AGM-86B at Minot AFB

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A B-52H bomber assigned to Minot Air Force Base took off with AGM-86B air-launched cruise missiles (ALCM) in order to verify that the bomber could supply the required voltage levels to the missile’s interface with the W80-1 nuclear bomb.

Airman 1st Class Eric G. Jarman, a crew chief assigned to the 5th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron, taxis a B-52H Stratofortress, Aug. 12, 2020, at Minot Air Force Base, ND. The purpose of the five to ten year comprehensive test is to demonstrate the capability of the B-52H aircraft to provide the required voltage levels for the mission configuration at the AGM-86B-to-W80 interface. The test data will be analyzed to compare against previous data in order to monitor changes in the baseline, thus indicating a design issue created by aging, aircraft modification, or a combination thereof. The required sample size for this test will meet a historical Sandia National Laboratories requirement of two B-52 aircrafts.(U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Jesse Jenny)