The airmen of the 40th Expeditionary Maintenance Squadron that maintain the B-1B bombers flying combat mission over Afghanistan haven’t missed one of more than 165 launches during the present expeditionary rotation, according to an feature article by Air Force journalist TSgt. Jason Smith. The airmen are performing the same type of work they would at home base, but they work at “a faster pace,” said SrA. Kevin Waxman, one of the unit’s crew chiefs. Capt. Andrew Hackleman, with the 40th EMXS, called the B-1B “a complicated and maintenance-intensive weapon system, and the crew chiefs work tirelessly, 24/7, keeping the jet safe and reliable for aircrew.”
A new report from the Government Accountability Office calls for the Pentagon’s Chief Technology Officer to have budget certification authority over the military services’ research and development accounts—a move the services say would add a burdensome and unnecessary layer of bureaucracy.
