The Chief of Staff of the Air Force, Gen. Michael Moseley, will present the first of the service’s new combat awards during a special public ceremony Tuesday at 8 a.m. at the new Air Force Memorial in Arlington, Va., just across from the Pentagon. Moseley plans to award Combat Action Medals to six airmen for their actions in a combat zone. The Air Force announced creation of the new medal in January of this year, saying it would “recognize the reality” that airmen are coming under enemy fire.
As Air Force leaders consider concepts of operations for Collaborative Combat Aircraft, sustainment in the field—and easing that support by using standard parts and limiting variants—should be a key consideration, according to a new study from AFA's Mitchell Institute of Aerospace Studies.