Air Combat Command officials say the command had only four Class A flight mishaps over the past fiscal year, compared to 12 in 2005. Col. Kelly Fletcher, ACC chief of flight safety, says that is the lowest flight mishap rate in 16 years—encompassing ACC and its predecessor Tactical Air Command.
The Air Force plans to add external weapons pylons on the B-1B bomber, both to increase the number of aircraft that can test hypersonic missiles and expand the Lancer’s loadout as USAF transitions to the B-21 bomber.