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It's really happening: the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is getting a third commercial airport. And from the start, it will be anchored by one of America's newest budget airlines.

Avelo Airlines on Tuesday announced it will be the first carrier to serve McKinney National Airport (DTX), which is expected to debut its new terminal and commercial flights later this year.

The five-year-old budget airline revealed its first five nonstop destinations, too, with service to four Florida cities — along with Las Vegas – set to launch in November.

A new airport in the Metroplex

This week's news was years in the making.

Leaders in McKinney have long discussed turning the 40-year-old general aviation airport into one that would welcome airlines.

Those plans kicked into high gear last summer when the city broke ground on a 46,000 square foot terminal that would house real passenger gates.

The idea: to offer North Texans an air travel alternative to the region's two larger hubs.

The airport is located in fast-growing Collin County, some 30-plus miles from both mega-hub Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) and Southwest Airlines home base Dallas Love Field (DAL).

GOOGLE MAPS Now, with the airport's new terminal on track to open later this year, according to the city, flights from DTX are now officially scheduled — and on sale.

5 initial Avelo routes

Avelo on Tuesday announced plans to make a base out of McKinney, which will house two of its Boeing 737-800 jets and around 100 crewmembers.

The carrier also revealed the airport's first five routes, which will each launch in November:

Route Launch date Frequency

DTX to Las Vegas' Harry Reid International Airport (LAS) Nov. 12 Four times per week on Mondays, Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays

DTX to Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL) Nov. 19 Five times per week on Mondays, Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays

DTX to Southwest Florida International Airport (RSW) near Fort Myers Nov. 11 Twice weekly on Wednesdays and Saturdays

DTX to Orlando International Airport (MCO) Nov. 12 Five tims per wek on Mondays, Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays

DTX to Tampa International Airport (TPA) Nov. 19 Four times per week on Mondays, Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays

Sunshine destinations galore

A clear trend in all of the new Avelo routes from McKinney: they're all meant to take passengers popular vacation destinations, with four cities in Florida and then Las Vegas on the list.

DAVID CRANE/MEDIANEWSGROUP, LOS ANGELES DAILY NEWS VIA GETTY IMAGES That tracks with Avelo's business model: Avelo is an ultra-low-cost carrier that operates on bare-bones, discounted fares (and add-on fees) similar to far larger Frontier Airlines and now-defunct Spirit Airlines.

How successful will McKinney and Avelo be?

Will customers flock to McKinney and Avelo's new service from the DFW region? Time will tell.

A mixed bag in past Avelo markets

Avelo has certainly had its share of swings — and misses — during its relatively short history; last summer, the airline's finances forced it to abandon its West Coast route network.

But the carrier has been a mainstay at Tweed-New Haven Airport (HVN) in Connecticut in recent years. That airport had struggled holding on to passenger airline service during the past decade, and when Avelo launched service there, HVN — like McKinney — had no regularly scheduled flights.

One of the biggest draws of Avelo's service from McKinney? Giving North Texas another low-cost airline option in the wake of Spirit's demise in May — especially given its plan to fly to popular leisure spots.

After Spirit's collapse, industry insiders I spoke with noted the best opportunity for low-cost carriers, going forward, would likely involve serving niche markets with little competition from the larger airlines. That could make getting in on DTX from the jump a strong play for Avelo.

SEAN CUDAHY/THE POINTS GUY Ultimately, the biggest question may be whether travelers actually think of Avelo — and McKinney — when booking that spring break trip, summer vacation or long weekend getaway. The carrier and airport will likely be hoping to win bargain-hunters searching fares on comparision sites like Google Flights and Kayak.

North Texas gets an airline and airport alternative

There's plenty of precedent for major metropolitan airports to have three (or more) commercial airports, the Metroplex is growing fast and the new airport will be more geographically convenient to northern residents.

On the other hand, travelers have spent decades driving to DFW and DAL — and Avelo, like McKinney, isn't a household name for a lot of travelers.

McKinney, Texas. ADAM KAZ/GETTY IMAGES So it's worth watching to see how things progress in McKinney.

"Avelo was built for moments like this, and we are thrilled to be the launch and anchor airline at McKinney," Andrew Levy, the airline's founder and CEO, said in a statement announcing the news Tuesday.

On track for late 2026 opening

McKinney leaders this week confirmed the four-gate terminal is on track to open later in 2026. The facility would have the flexibility to expand to six gates for airline service in the future.

DTX is expected to serve 200,000 passengers annually, with the flexibility to host 1 million annual travelers in the future.

With each of Avelo's initial routes set to launch in mid-November, the airport would be in operation by the Thanksgiving holiday rush.

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Editorial disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airline or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.

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HBO has been heavy-handed with fantasy projects this year, including two new releases out of the Game of Thrones franchise. The first project to expand the Westerosi lore in live action was A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms , set around 90 years before the original series. HBO brought back another Game of Thrones spin-off less than two weeks ago with the highly anticipated third season of House of the Dragon , which had a lot of work to do to win back fans after the divisive ending to Season 2. Things are off to a great start, though, as the first two episodes of House of the Dragon Season 3 are some of the highest-rated in the entire series. Another massively popular HBO show to emerge in just the last few years is The Last of Us , which has already aired two seasons since 2023.

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It was love at first sight. I knew I was meant to play cozy horror farming sim Grave Seasons as soon as I learned about its unconventional story of an ex-convict restoring the dark fairytale town Ashenridge, where handsome farmers, werewolves, and other serial killers exist in bloody disharmony.

"Grave Seasons is really special in that we don't hold back on the horror elements," developer Perfect Garbage co-founder and narrative director Emmett Nahil tells me during a Summer Game Fest 2026 interview, where I was happy to discover the game seems just as bold as I'd hoped.

I got to play a bit of Grave Seasons' introduction, where I wander a farm and dig up some plots for carrot plants, but I arrive in Ashenridge in a conspicuous prison jumpsuit. From just this experience, it's easy for me to determine the pastoral town isn't your typical, green suburbia, where khaki shorts neighbors smirk privately at those they think dress a little funny, and it isn't your Animal Crossing island, either, where you suppress feelings of hatred for community members because their little piggy noses are pretty cute. Developer Perfect Garbage's eerie countryside is different: there's death and emotional challenges as you define your new life as a reformed criminal, which makes my interest swell – like a diseased artery!

(Image credit: Perfect Garbage) You have one in-game year to learn who's the supernatural murderer terrorizing Ashenridge, whether or not they're the love of your life, and what you should do with that information. Save the world and prove that you've changed? Or keep filling up your watering can like nothing's wrong?

It'll probably be tougher than you think. Nahil says, "I always want to see more moral ambiguity, generally" in story narratives, and Grave Seasons has no easy answers.

Nahil continues, "I find a lot of game writing, when done to the broadest audience possible, can fall into a sort of good-versus-bad binary. Some of the games that I like most have really embraced the middle area, embrace that moral grayness, embrace the complicated repercussions of player decisions."

Putting players into the trudging shoes of protagonist Dara – whose appearance is customizable, but who begins Grave Seasons in that sickly orange jumpsuit no matter what – is the perfect way to force a nuanced mindset from the beginning. Nahil says he wants players to "embrace the fun, roguish nature of Dara. I really want them to feel like they can experiment with their choices and have fun, and also experience the consequences of maybe not-so-savory reactions."

(Image credit: Perfect Garbage) This is the kind of daring narrative ambition I always crave in horror, specifically, which I think has a duty to be visceral, itchy, and extra-impactful on an innocent audience member's sense of self. More specifically, Nahil says, "I want players to learn that it's worthwhile to get to know the people around you, to really learn deeply about the people that are in your community, no matter what kind of person you are. That's what Grave Seasons does best."

(Image credit: Perfect Garbage) Maybe I should switch to rollercoasters, or a glass of wine, but I've always had the desperate need for art to encourage me toward emotional places I never thought of going before. With its unique premise and magnanimous thoughts about community, it seems like Grave Seasons can do that with only a few bite marks and bags of carrot seeds.

I can't wait. Grave Seasons' original August 14 release date has been delayed to this fall, but I'll sit around until its new launch time is announced. Not patiently!

I'm convinced this farming sim horror demo is better than anything you'll play during Steam Next Fest .

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Dodge is celebrating the Charger’s 60th anniversary with a new paint color.

Known as Purple Haze, it costs $795 and is limited to 2027 models.

It builds on a legacy of classic purples including Plum Crazy and In‑Violet.

The 2027 Dodge Charger embraces color and personalization. That theme continues today as the company is celebrating the model’s 60th anniversary by introducing a new hue called Purple Haze.

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Designed to deliver “maximum visual punch,” the finish features a high-gloss clearcoat that causes the color to shift in bright sunlight. However, it “retreats to a rich, deep purple in the shade.”

More: Dodge Teases Surprise Summer Debuts, One Might Be The Charger SRT Hellcat

The color will be exclusive to the 2027 Charger and cost $795. It will be available across the entire lineup and the company is currently accepting orders.

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Dodge said Purple Haze is a natural addition as they have a “ heritage of bold color ” as their High Impact paint scheme was introduced in 1969. This effort spawned classics such as Go Mango, Top Banana, and Sublime. Dodge also noted purple is one of their signature colors as they’ve released a string of options ranging from Plum Crazy to In‑Violet and Hellraisin.

Purple Haze debuts at the Carlisle Chrysler Nationals next month and Dodge noted color is extremely important to muscle car buyers. As they explained, “In the full-size car segment, color choice is nearly three times more important than the industry average. On Dodge Charger, it’s a top-three purchase driver.”

A recent study also found that sports cars are the most likely to have ‘colorful’ paint jobs. 15.5% of them were blue last year, while 10.8% were red. Purple had a 1.8% share, but 63.6% were a grayscale color such as white, black, gray, or silver.

Speaking of color, Purple Haze isn’t the only stylish addition for the 2027 Charger. Quite the opposite as the interior offers new Petrol Blue leather sport seats. They have a “Digital Slash” perforation as well as red contrast stitching. Buyers can also get new Demonic Red seat belts.

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NASA provided an Artemis update today (June 30), announcing new lunar landing contracts for its Moon Base initiative and a surprise new possible rover mission that could be headed to the moon's south pole.

During the second monthly update that NASA has provided for its moon base plans , the agency named Astrobotic, Firefly Aerospace and Intuitive Machines as the providers of four robotic landers that will deliver scientific payloads to the surface of the moon , as NASA tests and expands the technologies needed for a permanent human outpost.

"This is this drawing on the playbook that worked very well for NASA during the 1960s," NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said during the livestreamed update, explaining the experiential approach to a crewed lunar return. "We didn't just jump right to Apollo 11 ."

Isaacman also announced the potential repurposing of an engineering development model built to mirror the agency's Perseverance and Curiosity rovers on Mars. "There is another," Isaacman said, quoting Yoda's line from "Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back."

That test rover is called PROMISE, short for "Polar Rover for Observation, Mapping, and In-Situ Exploration" (though it was formerly known as Optimism). PROMISE was developed at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Southern California, where it has been used as a test platform for fixes or commands that engineers want to try on the ground before permanently sending them to Perseverance and Curiosity. Now, NASA wants to send PROMISE on a mission of its own.

Though sending PROMISE to the moon would leave Perseverance and Curiosity — both of which remain active on Mars — without an Earth-based testbed, Isaacman thinks it would be worth it.

"We've had years now of experience operating the two rovers on the surface of Mars, and we've got this hardware that the taxpayers have invested a lot in," he said. "So the question was posed: 'What if we send it to the moon?'"

With a little refurbishment, PROMISE would help advance NASA's lunar plans, Isaacman added. Like Perseverance and Curiosity, the test rover is powered by a radioisotope thermoelectric generator ( RTG ), which converts heat from naturally decaying radioactive material into electricity. So it wouldn't require sunlight to operate — a real benefit on the moon, where most locations experience long stretches of darkness. (NASA plans to build its Artemis base near the moon's south pole, which is thought to harbor an abundance of water ice and also has a relatively complex lighting environment.)

The other robots currently in the works to launch on future missions to the moon, including the landers announced during today's update, are all solar powered. Through 2029, NASA hopes to launch up to 20 such missions as part of the CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services) initiative to support the first phase of the agency's moon base plans, and the landers announced today will be some of the first in that lineup.

Already expected this year was Blue Origin's Blue Moon Mark 1 cargo lander. It's slated to launch on the company's New Glenn rocket, which exploded last month during an engine test . That anomaly has complicated the Blue Moon timeline, though Blue Origin CEO Dave Limp has voiced confidence that New Glenn will launch again this year .

Two lunar deliveries were awarded to Astrobotic's Griffin 1 lander, one of which will fly Astrolab's FLIP rover the surface of the moon in the second half of 2026. Contracts to Firefly and Intuitive Machines call for the use of their Blue Ghost and Nova C landers, respectively, on CLPS missions in the next few years.

Three artist renderings depict commercial lunar landers from Astrobotic, Intuitive Machines, and Firefly on the moon. NASA announced June 30 that the landers will deliver more NASA science investigations and technology demonstrations to the lunar surface for NASA’s Moon Base Program. (Image credit: Astrobotic/Intuitive Machines/Firefly) Each CLPS lander mission will carry at least three NASA payloads. The Stereo Camera for Lunar Plume Surface Studies (SCALPSS) array will study lander engine exhaust plume effects on lunar dust, to better predict landing requirements and prevent erosion and dangerous ejecta; a Laser Retroreflector Array (LRA) will test landers' ability to determine positioning and navigate using lasers and reflectors; and a Linear Energy Transfer Spectrometer (LETS) will measure radiation in the space around the moon and different areas on its surface.

"We know a lot about the moon, some of the south pole, but nothing like what we need to learn before we send humans there and we actually build a moon base," Carlos Garcia-Golan, NASA's Moon Base program manager, said during today's event. "So putting different assets on the surface, prospecting, understanding the environment and the places where we want to go [is] super critical."

Garcia-Golan is on board with the PROMISE moon plan as well. While it might sound crazy to send a spare Mars rover to the moon, it's the kind of crazy that NASA should be doing, he said. After all, JPL's motto is "Dare mighty things."

"We are in the business of the near impossible, so why not?" Garcia-Golan said.

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Sometime in the next few weeks, the decommissioned Ticonderoga class guided missile cruiser ex- USS Mobile Bay , the 7th example of her class built, will be sent to the bottom of the Pacific Ocean by friendly forces, according to the San Diego Union-Tribune . The Tarawa class ex-USS Peleliu (LHA-5) amphibious assault ship will also be pummeled to its doom by friendly fire. These are two very high-profile and vastly different targets, which will make for a uniquely interesting pair of SINKEX drills. The event will take place during the 30th Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) biennial international maritime exercise.

RIMPAC 2026 began June 24 and runs through July 31; however, the date and manner of the sinking are not yet known. The sinking exercise (SINKEX) is the capstone event at each RIMPAC , though the type of surplus ship used varies.

The guided-missile cruiser USS Mobile Bay (CG 53) cutting through the Pacific Ocean, Feb. 5, 2019. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Jake Greenberg) Petty Officer 2nd Class Jacob L. Greenberg

Mobile Bay was decommissioned in 2023 and determined ineligible to be placed on the National Register of Historic Places a year later, sealing its fate.

Commissioned on Feb. 27, 1987, Mobile Bay took part in a number of major events during its 36 years in service.

“The ship’s operational history includes the 1989 evacuation of the U.S. Embassy in Beirut, Lebanon; launching 22 Tomahawk Land Attack Missiles (TLAMs) in support of Operation Desert Storm and the evacuation of thousands of people displaced by the volcanic eruption of Mt. Pinatubo in the vicinity of Subic Bay, Republic of the Philippines during Operation Fiery Vigil in 1991,” according to the Navy . It also participated in the “U.S. Coast Guard Law Enforcement Detachment (CGLED) seizure of 10.5 metric tons of cocaine approximately 800 miles southwest of Acapulco, Mexico, and launching TLAMS in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2003.”

In addition to the date of its sinking being so far unknown, we also do not know how Mobile Bay will be struck. These events are used to test out a variety of weapons systems and crews to see how they perform. This often includes the ship being hit by many different kinds of weapons.

In the most recent SINKEX, for instance, we wrote that a U.S. Air Force B-2A Spirit bomber fired an AGM-158C Long Range Anti-Ship Missile (LRASM) at the ex-USS Juneau during Valiant Shield 2026 in the Western Pacific. You can read more about that in our story about that here . Often times everything from torpedoes to short-range missiles to rocket artillery to airborne gunfire is used to maximize the sacrifice of the retired hull.

A U.S. Air Force B-2A Spirit bomber launched an AGM-158C Long Range Anti-Ship Missile (LRASM) at the ex-USS Juneau during a SINKEX at Valiant Shield 2026. (USAF) USAF

Mobile Bay , which took part in RIMPAC 2022, is one of four Ticonderoga class cruisers set to be disposed of by a SINKEX. In addition, the ex-USS Vella Gulf , the ex-USS Antietam and the ex-USS Port Royal are all facing the same fate, according to Navy records.

The ex-USS Valley Forge was the first of the decommissioned Ticonderogas to be sunk, during target practice in Hawaii in November 2006 .

Crewmembers prepare to say farewell to their ship during the decommissioning ceremony of Ticonderoga class guided missile cruiser USS Antietam (CG 54). (U.S. Navy photo by Ens. Paula Hackbart/Released) Ensign Paula Hackbart

The Ticonderogas carry Tomahawk Land Attack Missiles (TLAM) and serve as air and missile defense batteries and command and control platforms. They are also equipped with Harpoon anti-ship missiles and MH-60R Sea Hawk helicopters, and execute anti-submarine warfare operations.

Built in the 1980s and early 1990s, these cruisers primarily provide the backbone of a carrier strike group’s air warfare capabilities.

There are nine ships in this class still serving in the Navy. Of those, a half dozen are slated to be decommissioned in the coming years, while the remainder — USS Gettysburg , USS Chosin and USS Cape St. George — have been modernized or are close to finishing modernization and will serve out toward the end of the decade .

USS Gettysburg . (U.S. Navy Photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Kaitlin Young)

The effort to keep these ships afloat has been costly and controversial, which you can read more about in our story about the process here .

The Navy is billing RIMPAC 2026 as the largest in the history of these exercises.

PHILIPPINE SEA (Oct. 22, 2014) – The amphibious assault ship USS Peleliu (LHA 5) sails into open water as part of the Peleliu Amphibious Ready Group (PELARG). (U.S. Navy Photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Joshua Hammond/Released) MC1 Joshua Hammond

“Thirty nations, over 30 surface ships, five submarines, 15 national land forces, more than 206 aircraft and 30,000 personnel will train and operate in and around the Hawaiian Islands during the exercise,” the Navy said in a release . “RIMPAC provides a unique training opportunity while fostering and sustaining cooperative relationships among participants that are critical to ensuring the security of sea lanes and stability across the region.”

It will be interesting to see how the ex- Mobile Bay is ultimately disposed of. We will provide an update when more information is available.

Contact the author: howard@twz.com

The post Ticonderoga Class Cruiser Set To Be Sunk During RIMPAC Wargames appeared first on TWZ .

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We’re now five full years removed from the last James Bond movie, No Time to Die starring Daniel Craig , and 007 fans are waiting on pins and needles for more information about the next Bond film in the works at Amazon . Bond fans have had a new project to hold them over before the next film though in 007 First Light , the new AAA video game developed by IO Interactive , the same studio behind the critically acclaimed Hitman trilogy. Amazon has not released any plot specifics regarding the next James Bond movie, which is still without an official title, but the first behind-the-scenes details about the film are finally beginning to take shape. Denis Villeneuve , famous for his work on the Dune movies, is directing the new 007 film with a script from Peaky Blinders scribe Steven Knight .

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While the organizers behind Stop Killing Games remain optimistic about the movement's future, they've been dealt another blow from lawmakers. The Protect Our Games Act failed to reach the required committee votes to move forward in California, but what's really gotten the gaming world's attention is the argument made by the Entertainment Software Association during the hearing. According to the lobbying group, private Minecraft servers are illegal.

"They're illegal, and they're not in any way affiliated with Microsoft," according to Jennifer Gibbons, vice president for state government affairs at the ESA (thanks, PC Gamer ). "Microsoft, for Minecraft, has gotten a lot of criticism because of those community servers not employing the same safety standards that Microsoft does on their Minecraft servers."

That statement – and Gibbons' later assertion that private servers are tantamount to "piracy" – might seem like a bizarre thing to say, considering that you can download the tools to create your own private server directly from the official Minecraft website . But, unfortunately, that's simply a right that Microsoft is offering to players, and one that it's free to revoke at any time.

"Private servers infringe on the intellectual property (IP) rights of game publishers," the ESA says in a statement to PC Gamer. "Publishers reserve the right to exercise their rights against them." That is, indeed, the law as it stands, and one of the key points that Stop Killing Games is trying to change, hoping to require publishers to provide tools to create community servers after an online game shuts down.

According to the ESA, the provision in the Protect Our Games Act "that proposed these servers as a legitimate alternative to keep games running raises concerns about a publisher's ability to enforce their IP rights. In addition, private servers operate with no oversight from the publisher and do not uphold the same trust and safety standards. This could create an unsafe environment for players and be counter to the industry's commitment to fostering safe and fun game play for all players."

This is the second major decision against Stop Killing Games this month, as the EU Commission decided against introducing new legislation in response to the campaign. Yet, Stop Killing Games founder Ross Scott believes that the campaign has made such significant inroads with members of the EU parliament that legislation will likely happen regardless of the Commission's decision .

"We are not stopping," according to a similarly optimistic message from Stop Killing Games responding to the California decision. "Not even close. Next session, we come back with an in-person lobbying presence, the funding to do this properly, and a long list of organizations and developers signed on in support. We are not limiting this to California. We intend to introduce versions of this in other state legislatures, and we are seriously looking at the federal level. The ESA is about to learn what it is like to fight on many fronts at once. They have to win every single time to keep things the way they are. We only have to win once to change them."

These are the new games for 2026 (and beyond) you need to know about.