Air Combat Command is paying 31 percent more for aviation fuel today than a year ago, raising the price from $1.74 per gallon to $2.53 per gallon. This is the second year in a row that ACC has faced a high fuel bill. In Fiscal 2005, the command paid $1.4 billion more for fuel than it had in 2004. On top of the higher fuel costs, ACC officials say a tighter budget has led the Air Force to reduce its flying hour budget for training by 10 percent a year from Fiscal 2008 to 2013. However, ACC flying-hour program analyst John Cilento says ACC already programs “the minimum requirements to train our aircrews, so any reduction is a loss of an already maxed out training capability.” ACC is looking at two potential, but long-term solutions: high-fidelity simulators and coal-to-jet-fuel research.
The Department of Defense needs to collect and track more data, develop better goals and strategies, and monitor the effectiveness of its plans when it comes to recruiting and retaining service members, the Government Accountability Office said in a report released March 28. The report comes as recruiters across the…