Air Force Gen. Lance Smith, head of US Joint Forces Command, and Marine Corps Gen. James Jones, chief of US European Command, told the Commission on the National Guard and Reserves last week that they do not support raising the status of the chief of the National Guard Bureau to a seat on the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Congress Daily’s Megan Scully reports that Smith told the commissioners, who have been asked by Congress to study, among other things, the question of raising the rank of the NGB chief to four stars with a place on the JCS, that he believes such a move would create “another stovepipe.”
Airmen and Guardians in the Active and Reserve component, as well as civilian employees, in “mission critical and high-risk populations” are now required to receive influenza vaccinations annually to “preserve force readiness,” according to a recent Department of the Air Force memo.