McDonnell Douglas F-15E Strike Eagle

April 10, 2026 | Cameron McMillan, Ryan Brobst, Bradley Bowman

How to assess America’s 40 days of war against Iran

Washington and Tehran are both arguing that they were victorious after 40 days of fighting. A detailed analysis, however, suggests a more nuanced picture in which American forces degraded Iran’s core...

April 3, 2026 | Joe Truzman, Bill Roggio

Iran downs US fighter jet, 1 crew member recovered, rescue operation ongoing for second

Iran reportedly shot down a US Air Force F-15E Strike Eagle on April 3, marking the first confirmed loss of a manned American fighter jet inside Iranian territory since the start of Operation Epic Fury...

March 3, 2026 | Janatan Sayeh |

US-Israeli strikes hit Iran’s missile, nuclear, political, and repression sites

On March 2 and 3, the United States and Israel continued their sweeping joint military campaign, hitting conventional battlefield assets and a variety of other regime targets across Tehran and central...

May 23, 2025 | Janatan Sayeh |

Iran braces for potential conflict as 5th round of US negotiations ends inconclusively

As the fifth round of negotiations between Tehran and Washington concluded in Rome, signs of progress remained elusive. Iranian state media reported on May 23 that US Special Envoy to the Middle...

January 24, 2023 | Bradley Bowman, Ryan Brobst

With an Eye on Adversaries, the U.S. and Israel Conduct Major Military Exercise

The United States and Israel kicked off the week-long Juniper Oak 23 multi-domain military exercise on Monday in Israel. A senior U.S. defense official called it the “most significant” bilateral exercise...

August 25, 2022 | Bradley Bowman, Maj. Brian Leitzke

Avoiding empty cockpits: Addressing the Air Force’s pilot shortage problem

Fielding the best aircraft in the world won’t matter if the Air Force can’t retain enough well-trained pilots to fly them, argue FDD’s Bradley Bowman and Maj. Brian Leitzke.

March 31, 2022 | Bradley Bowman, Ryan Brobst, Seth J. Frantzman

In Iniochos Exercise, Israel Rehearses Iran Strikes as Saudis Observe

The Greek-hosted Iniochos 2022 military exercise began this week, with Athens welcoming military contingents from the United States, Israel, Cyprus, France, Italy, and Slovenia. The exercise, which also...