Lt. Gen. Gary L. North is the new commander of 9th Air Force and US Central Command Air Forces, headquartered at Shaw AFB, S.C. In a ceremony last week, North replaced Lt. Gen. Walter E. Buchanan III, who officially retires on April 1. North was the director of operations for US Pacific Command.
The rate of building B-21 bombers would speed up if the fiscal 2026 defense budget passes. But it remains unclear how much capacity would be added, and whether the Air Force would simply build the bombers faster, or buy more.
