The meeting on Thursday with President Donald Trump is expected to clear the way for Turkey to acquire everything from Lockheed Martin and Boeing aircraft to liquefied natural gas worth more than $50 billion, according to Turkish officials, who requested anonymity because the agreements have not yet been finalized.

The largest portion of the potential agreements on Thursday is expected to be in aviation. Boeing and Lockheed Martin may receive orders for up to 250 commercial airplanes along with additional F-16 fighter jets, Turkish officials said. The purpose of the new aircraft purchase is to modernize the Turkish air force's aging fighter fleet and adapt it to the challenges of the coming decade.

More importantly, Trump said last week that there is a chance to resolve the long-standing impasse regarding the F-35 stealth jets. Turkey was an original partner in the Lockheed's most advanced fighter jet program, but was removed after it acquired Russia's S-400 air defense system. This acquisition resulted in congressional sanctions, known as CAATSA, which are directed at Turkey's defense industries and still remain in effect.

Dr. Assa Ophir, a Turkey expert from the Department of Middle Eastern Studies at Ariel University, explained, "The issue that should concern Israel most is Turkey's desire to rejoin the stealth jet project and receive the F-35 aircraft. The US expelled Turkey from the program in 2019 because of its purchase of the Russian S-400 defense systems. Stealth jets in Erdoğan's hands could lead to the loss of Israel's air superiority in the region, and this is a very undesirable outcome for it."

However, Dr. Ophir said, "But the path for Turkey's return to the stealth project and the receipt of the aircraft is still long. Erdoğan will need to overcome two serious obstacles that do not depend solely on Donald Trump – CAATSA, which imposes sanctions on all countries that buy military equipment from Russia, and the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), both of which are laws that must be passed through the US Congress where there is a hostile atmosphere toward Turkey."

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Prominent Republicans and Trump allies have voiced strong opposition to President Donald Trump's reported plan to accept a luxury Boeing 747-8 aircraft from Qatar's royal family, raising concerns about national security implications and ethical standards.

Former UN ambassador Nikki Haley condemned the arrangement, which would see the Qatari government provide Trump with a lavish aircraft reportedly valued at approximately $400 million.

"Accepting gifts from foreign nations is never a good practice. It threatens intelligence and national security. Especially when that nation supports a terrorist organization and allows those terrorist regimes to live on its soil," Haley said in a post on X. "Regardless of how beautiful the plane may be, it opens a door and implies the President and US can be bought. If this were Biden, we would be furious."

A $400 million plane is not a gift, it's a bribe. It's turning my stomach that Qatar, a state sponsor of terror, has become a major player on the global stage. Hamas is celebrating, which is all you need to know. Thank you so much @KatrinaSzish for having me @NEWSMAX. pic.twitter.com/n1TiP65stV

— Batya Ungar-Sargon (@bungarsargon) May 12, 2025

 Conservative commentator Ben Shapiro echoed these concerns. "Taking sacks of goodies from people who support Hamas, Muslim Brotherhood, Al Jazeera, all the rest, that's not America First," Shapiro said. "I think if we switch the names to Hunter Biden and Joe Biden, we'd all be freaking out on the right. If you want President Trump to succeed, this kind of skeezy stuff needs to stop."

Even staunch Trump supporter Laura Loomer expressed reservations about the arrangement. "I love President Trump. I would take a bullet for him. But, I have to call a spade a spade. We cannot accept a $400 million 'gift' from jihadists in suits," Loomer stated.

This is the $400 million 'palace in the sky' Boeing 747-8 jumbo jet being gifted to Trump by the Qatari Royal Family.

Trump confirmed his administration was preparing to accept the aircraft, calling it a "very public and transparent transaction."

pic.twitter.com/0pKdVAS3OF

— Oli London (@OliLondonTV) May 12, 2025

Trump defended his plan to accept the luxury aircraft from Qatar's royal family at the White House on Monday, saying, "It is a very nice gesture. They're giving us a gift. I could be a stupid person and say, 'We don't want a free plane.' It helps us out."

According to reports, the aircraft would be transferred to the US Air Force, which would operate it during Trump's term before it would be transferred to the Trump Presidential Library Foundation after his presidency. White House officials have maintained that the arrangement is legal since the aircraft is being given to the Air Force rather than to Trump personally.

The current presidential aircraft fleet includes two Boeing 747-200 planes that have been in operation since 1990. A contract to replace them was signed in 2018 but has faced significant delays, with Boeing previously estimating delivery no earlier than 2029.

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The Israeli Defense Ministry sealed a landmark procurement agreement with Boeing yesterday, securing 25 advanced F-15IA fighter jets in a deal valued at approximately $5.2 billion. First disclosed by Israel Hayom in January, the agreement, financed through American military aid funds, includes an option for acquiring 25 additional aircraft in the future.

The state-of-the-art jets will incorporate cutting-edge weapon systems, including proprietary Israeli technologies, featuring substantial enhancements in range, payload capacity, and combat performance. The delivery schedule projects the first aircraft arriving in 2031, with annual deliveries of 4-6 jets.

Defense Ministry Director General Maj. Gen. (ret) Eyal Zamir characterized the acquisition as part of a comprehensive IDF modernization initiative that has reached approximately $41 billion since the outbreak of the Iron Swords War. "While pursuing unprecedented acquisitions of munitions and advanced weaponry, we're simultaneously securing long-term force enhancement agreements. The new F-15 squadron will complement our third F-35 squadron, contracted earlier this year. This represents an unparalleled future capability upgrade for our Air Force and Israel's long-range strategic capabilities, whose critical importance has been demonstrated during the Iron Swords War. The Defense Ministry continues to advance comprehensive enhancement programs across all IDF domains – aerial, naval, ground, intelligence, and beyond," Zamir said.

Boeing Israel President Maj. Gen. (ret) Ido Nehoshtan underscored the corporation's enduring partnership with Israel and its commitment to delivering advanced aircraft by established protocols.

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NASA has announced that two astronauts currently on an extended stay aboard the International Space Station (ISS) will return to Earth in February on a SpaceX Crew Dragon flight, rather than on the Boeing Starliner capsule that brought them to orbit.

The decision comes after an agency-level review on Saturday, which included NASA Administrator Bill Nelson. The change in plans is due to ongoing technical issues with the Boeing Starliner, including small leaks and thruster failures.

"NASA has decided that Butch and Suni will return with [SpaceX's] Crew-9 next February, and that Starliner will return uncrewed," Nelson stated during a press conference. He emphasized that Boeing has worked closely with NASA to provide necessary data for this decision, adding, "We want to further understand the root causes and understand the design improvements so that the Boeing Starliner will serve as an important part of our assured crew access to the ISS."

Astronauts Sunita "Suni" Williams and Barry "Butch" Wilmore have been on the ISS since June 6, initially as part of a crucial test flight for the Starliner before it could receive NASA approval for routine flights. However, their planned eight-day mission extended into months due to technical issues, including reaction control thrusters that failed during Starliner's first docking attempt.

Steve Stich, program manager for NASA's commercial crew program, explained the rationale behind bringing Starliner back uncrewed: "The bottom line relative to bringing Starliner back is … there was just too much uncertainty in the prediction of the thrusters."

While awaiting their return, Williams and Wilmore will continue to contribute to science and maintenance tasks on the ISS. Dana Weigel, manager of NASA's ISS program, noted, "They've already done about 100 hours of work on 42 different experiments, and they've helped us with some of the critical station maintenance that we've had on board."

NASA officials stressed that the decision to switch to SpaceX for the astronauts' return is not a matter of trust with Boeing. Jim Free, NASA associate administrator, stated, "I don't think it's a trust issue at all. I don't think we're rebuilding trust. I think we're looking at the data, and we view the data and the uncertainty that's there differently than Boeing does."

The SpaceX Crew-9 mission is scheduled to launch no earlier than September 24. NASA and SpaceX are currently working on several preparatory tasks, including seat reconfiguration on the Crew-9 Dragon and adjusting the manifest to accommodate additional cargo and personal effects for Wilmore and Williams.

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American F-15 fighter jets, outfitted with a cutting-edge radar system, thwarted about 75 Iranian Shahed drones during the April 13 Iranian assault on Israel, according to retired General Rob Novotny, who oversees fighter jet business development at Boeing.

Novotny shared this information on Tuesday during a press briefing at the Farnborough Airshow in England. The radar system manufactured by Raytheon is also a key component of the new F-15EX model that Israel intends to acquire, subject to Congressional approval. The initial order encompasses 25 aircraft, with options for an additional 50, bringing the potential total to 75 jets.

"No further sales pitch is necessary," Novotny stated. "This radar has proven its exceptional worth in combat." Boeing's chief F-15 test pilot, Matt "Phat" Giese, also participated in the briefing. He revealed that an F-15 carrying 12 training missiles is part of the airshow's aerobatic display, alongside an unarmed "clean" aircraft.

"Right after takeoff, I execute a highly intricate maneuver with the aircraft called a swirl loop, which has never been performed before with an armed jet. The aircraft doesn't sacrifice an ounce of capability despite the attached missiles," Giese remarked enthusiastically.

Elbit Systems, exhibiting through its British subsidiary, follows the pattern of other Israeli companies by primarily showcasing models within its stand rather than displaying full systems on the ground.

The booth features two of the world's most advanced helmets, drawing considerable attention from attendees. The first, designed for helicopter pilots and bearing a resemblance to Darth Vader's iconic headgear, is called X-Sight. This modular helmet incorporates a mission computer running an artificial intelligence algorithm, delivering a crisp, clear, and precise image. It enables low-altitude flying and identifies hard-to-spot ground obstacles and threats in all weather conditions.

Sagi Peleg, VP of Business Development & Strategy in the Aerospace Division, explained that this system fuses data from various sensors to present pilots with a comprehensive, integrated view. "We're implementing a completely novel strategy, offering pilots an augmented reality system that provides a combined picture constructed from various sensors and synthetic processors."

This advancement means pilots can see power lines in the field along with their height, clearly marked with numbers. "The days of separate displays for radar, weapons systems, and other components are behind us. Now, all the information is consolidated and processed into a single, comprehensive picture."

The helmet is part of Elbit's new comprehensive strategic suite, available to both helicopter and fighter jet pilots – a holistic solution displayed on a single screen.

The second helmet, dubbed "Zero G," represents a significant upgrade to the advanced helmet used by F-35 pilots worldwide and in other cutting-edge aircraft: it's remarkably lightweight. "The original helmet, packed with technologies, was quite heavy," Peleg explained. "Pilots reported neck pain due to the weight. We've drastically reduced it, greatly alleviating the physical strain on pilots," he concluded.

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Boeing has agreed to plead guilty to a felony charge of conspiring to defraud the US government in a case linked to the crashes of its 737 Max jets that killed 346 people, the Washington Post reports. The plea deal, reached just before a midnight deadline on Sunday, marks a significant turn for the aerospace giant and comes after the Justice Department determined that Boeing failed to meet the terms of a 2021 agreement to avoid prosecution for allegedly not sharing crucial information from the Federal Aviation Administration about a new automated control system on the Max. This system was implicated in both the Indonesian and Ethiopian crashes, causing uncontrollable dives.

The deal comes after the Justice Department said the company had violated that 2021 agreement by not properly addressing issues, namely, by not making the changes it had committed to in order to detect and prevent violations of federal anti-fraud laws.

The plea agreement, which must still be approved by the court, includes several key provisions. Boeing will pay an additional $487.2 million in penalties, agree to oversight by an independent monitor, spend at least $455 million to strengthen compliance and safety programs, and be placed on supervised probation for approximately three years, a Justice Department official told the Washington Post.

"This criminal conviction demonstrates the department's commitment to holding Boeing accountable for its misconduct," the official stated.

The deal also includes a long-sought meeting between Boeing's board of directors and the families of crash victims. However, Paul Cassell, an attorney representing the families and a professor at S.J. Quinney College of Law at the University of Utah, immediately filed an objection to the agreement on their behalf.

The criminal case delves into the design of the Max, an updated version of Boeing's popular 737. The company was racing to compete with European rival Airbus in the 2010s when it developed the automated system implicated in the crashes. Prosecutors allege that two technical pilots concealed information about the system's expanded capabilities from an FAA oversight office, leading to its omission from a safety report and leaving pilots unfamiliar with its operation.

This plea agreement comes on the heels of a January 2021 deferred prosecution agreement between Boeing and the Justice Department. Under that deal, which expired shortly after a midair blowout incident on an Alaska Airlines 737 in January 2024, Boeing acknowledged that its technical pilots misled federal regulators about the software system.

The Washington Post reports that by May, federal prosecutors found Boeing had violated the terms of the 2021 agreement, partly by failing to create agreed-upon compliance and ethics programs.

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The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) are investigating the potential use of counterfeit or improperly documented titanium parts with falsified certification in some Boeing and Airbus jets, including the Boeing 737 Max, 787 Dreamliner, and Airbus A220.

The issue was raised by Spirit AeroSystems, a supplier of wings and fuselages, after discovering small holes and corrosion in the titanium components, raising concerns about their authenticity and structural integrity.

Both Boeing and Airbus have confirmed that their in-service fleets are unaffected, and they have conducted tests to ensure the correct titanium alloy was used and removed affected parts before delivery.

The investigation aims to determine how many planes built between 2019 and 2023 have these faulty parts and assess the safety implications.

Boeing and Airbus have emphasized their commitment to safety and quality, stating that planes with the affected parts are safe to fly, and they are collaborating closely with the supplier to resolve the issue and prevent falsified records in the future.

The investigation comes amidst existing scrutiny on Boeing and Spirit's safety protocols, as well as a new FAA inquiry into potential quality control issues at Boeing's 787 Dreamliner assembly line.

Sources: Bloomberg, New York Times, NBC News, CNN, The Independent, New York Post, Gizmodo, nextbigfuture.com, aviationpros.com, globaltimes.cn, eurasiareview.com, independentsentinel.com, aviation24.be, globeecho.com, jetlinemarvel.net, fl360aero.com.

This article was written in collaboration with Generative AI news company Alchemiq.

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Iran's head of civil aviation said the Islamic republic "will not give the black boxes of the crashed Ukrainian airliner to Boeing." The official did not say if the boxes would be given to anyone outside the country, but the shunning of the US manufacturer appears to be in retaliation to US economic sanctions that have prevented Iran from acquiring new aircraft.

The Ukraine International Airlines Boeing 737 crashed earlier on Wednesday, killing all 176 people aboard shortly after taking off from Tehran's Imam Khomeini airport.

The Iranian decision adds mystery to the circumstances of the crash, which happened almost at the same time as Iran was firing missiles on an American base in Iraq, in retaliation for the killing of Qassem Suleimani, the commander of the Revolutionary Guards' elite Quds Force, one of Iran's most powerful military entities and a crucial tool in spreading its regional influence.

Suleimani, who was a designated terrorist by the US government, was killed in a targeted drone strike last week in Iraq. The Trump administration said he had been planning an imminent attack against US interests.

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The Boeing 767-300ER, which was manufactured 19 years ago originally for Qantas, took off at 1042 a.m. local time and landed back at Ben-Gurion International Airport after its successful test flight.

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The plane was bought by the Israeli government three years ago, after which the Israel Aerospace Industries fitted the aircraft with sophisticated systems so that it could serve Israeli leaders even when they are far away home.

On the outside it has blue and white coating, matching the colors of Israel's national flag.

On the fuselage, the Israeli flag is flanked by the writing "State of Israel" in English and Hebrew. A Star of David appears on its tail.

Video: Moshe Ben Simhon

The aircraft can fly from Israel to China, the United States or Brazil without any layovers. Its encrypted communication systems will allow Israeli leaders to continue performing their duties without interruption.

Due to the high profile of its passengers, engineers had to properly address a host of security concerns.

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The El Al Boeing 787 was originally scheduled to depart New York early on Sunday, but during the loading of luggage, part of the aircraft apparently got broken, passengers said.

The passengers, who were deboarded from the plane after having already been seated for two hours, were told the flight would be delayed by at least 48 hours due to the required service to the plane and due to the Jewish holiday.

For some passengers, this means they would only be able to fly after 72 hours. Jews who live outside Israel celebrate Shemini Atzeret for two days: Monday and Tuesday.

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