Pacific Air Forces boss Gen. Howie Chandler led the redesignation ceremony, transforming 7th Air Force into 7th Air Force, Air Forces Korea, part of the Air Force initiative to establish warfighting components to support specific combatant commanders. Lt. Gen. Stephen Wood, former 7th AF commander, remains in charge and said the new restructured organization would provide “better critical component capabilities” to US Forces Korea. Some 2,000 US and South Korea military personnel and South Korea civilians attended the Jan. 30 ceremony at Osan Air Base. (7th AF, AFK report by Lt. Col. Rene White)
The Air Force wants to pump more than $12 billion over the next five years into its new affordable long-range missiles program and recently asked industry to push the flights of some of those munitions beyond 1,200 miles.