by Lane Butz | Oct 14, 2026 | Beehiiv
Edited by Sidney McAlearThe WhatTaiwan’s first two new F-16C Block 70s landed at Chihhang Air Base on October 2. They’re the first of 66 ordered in 2019 for about $8 billion, and they arrived more than three years late. Weeks earlier, Air & Space...
by Lane Butz | Jun 22, 2026 | Beehiiv
Operation Midnight Hammer through the eyes of the F-16 Wild Weasel pilots who flew it. This is the firsthand account of the 55th Fighter Squadron and the 20th Fighter Wing. These are the pilots who fly Suppression of Enemy Air Defenses, known as SEAD, the crews who...
by Lane Butz | Jun 17, 2026 | Beehiiv
In December 2025 and January 2026, we spent several days at Shaw Air Force Base interviewing the men and women of the 20th Fighter Wing & 55th Fighter Squadron, who executed Operation Midnight Hammer. From the F-16 pilots who flew into Iran to the intelligence...
by Lane Butz | Apr 4, 2026 | Beehiiv
Edited by Sidney McAlearIn Partnership with Proton PassWelcome inThe Lowdown is your intel brief on aviation, defense, and geopolitics. No noise. No spin. Just the stuff that matters. Subscribe and stick around…or don’t…the choice is yours. Check us out on...
by Lane Butz | Mar 25, 2026 | Beehiiv
Edited by Sidney McAlearIn Partnership with Proton PassWelcome inThe Lowdown is your intel brief on aviation, defense, and geopolitics. No noise. No spin. Just the stuff that matters. Subscribe and stick around…or don’t…the choice is yours. Check us out on...
by Lane Butz | Mar 18, 2026 | Beehiiv
Edited by Sidney McAlearWelcome inThe Lowdown is your intel brief on aviation, defense, and geopolitics. No noise. No spin. Just the stuff that matters. Subscribe and stick around…or don’t…the choice is yours. Check us out on Youtube: Afterburn Defense &...
