The Air Force says its needs to divest itself of an unspecified number of additional officers this year, as part of its Force Shaping Phase II initiative. This endeavor is not part of the impending reduction of 40,000 slots over the 2007-11 time period, rather it’s part of the effort over the last two years to get the service down to its currently authorized end strength. The targets this time are not junior officers but ones with at least eight years commissioned service and those lieutenant colonels and colonels who are retirement eligible. The service is offering some waivers to get these officers out the door. If it doesn’t get enough to volunteer, then the service likely would hold a board in early 2007 to pick the ones to go.
The top Air Force commander on on the Japanese island of Okinawa has clamped down alcohol and issued a curfew for junior enlisted Airmen and Guardians at Kadena Air Base for the next month. The order came roughly two weeks after a U.S. Marine was arrested for allegedly robbing and…