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Missouri Air National Guard pilot ejected, sustaining minor injuries, before his F-15C crashed about 125 miles south of St. Louis in a wooded area on Nov. 2, reports the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. The following day, the Air Force suspended all non- mission-critical F-15 flights pending the results of an accident investigation. A Nov. 4 USAF release indicates that preliminary findings point to a “possible structural failure.” The average age of the F-15s flown by the Air Guard is around 28 years; the average age for active duty F-15s is around 20 years, largely because the active force also flies the much younger E model. The Air Force does not specify whether it has restricted operations for all models.
Promotions to the Space Force’s second highest enlisted grade, senior master sergeant, have surged to the highest level in the young service’s history, bolstering the senior NCO corps as officials plan to aggressively expand the force and especially the enlisted corps.