The Clovis (N.M.) News Journal reports that the plan to give ownership of Cannon AFB, N.M., to Air Force Special Operations Command on Oct. 1 is “moving along without issues.” AFSOC spokesman Matt Durham told the newspaper, “We certainly haven’t seen any showstoppers.” Sen. Pete Domenici (D-N.M.) last month expressed some concern when the Senate Armed Services Committee markup of the 2008 defense bill did not include extra funding for Cannon, however defense officials believe the Air Force has sufficient money to make the switch from Air Combat Command to AFSOC this fall.
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.