Air Force Visitors Know Space Up Close:

April 17, 2006

Audio of this article is brought to you by the Air & Space Forces Association, honoring and supporting our Airmen, Guardians, and their families. Find out more at afa.org

Two current Air Force leaders, both former astronauts, STARBASE Louisiana at Barksdale AFB, La., last week and “wowed” the 25 fifth-graders taking part in the 917th Wing’s science camp, reports the Shreveport (La.) Times. The leaders were Air Force Undersecretary Ronald Sega and Lt. Gen. Kevin Chilton, 8th Air Force commander. STARBASE is a DOD program to promote the interest of young people in math, science, and technology.

Audio of this article is brought to you by the Air & Space Forces Association, honoring and supporting our Airmen, Guardians, and their families. Find out more at afa.org

Trending Stories

Air Force Fighter Roadmap Projects Slow Growth for F-35 Fleet

Senate Passes Bill to End Shutdown, Keep Air Force Working on E-7

Unique Group of Airmen Face a Third Missed Paycheck Without Shutdown Resolution

The Pentagon Wants to Buy Weapons Faster. What Will It Cost?

Related

Air Force Using AI to Plan Storage for Munitions

Nov. 13, 2025
When lawmakers and outside experts turn their attention to how the U.S. military can use of artificial intelligence, they tend to focus on weapons systems—the most consequential and risk-laden use cases—and on generative AI. But behind the scenes, the Air Force is already using machine learning algorithms to help solve…

Record Government Shutdown Ends, Pentagon Employees to Return

Nov. 12, 2025
President Donald Trump signed legislation reopening the federal government late Nov. 12, ending the longest shutdown in U.S. history. The move sets the stage for tens of thousands of defense civilians to return to work and guarantees troops will be paid in a few days’ time.

Air Force Chief OKs Daily Callsign Nametags, Friday Morale T-Shirts

Nov. 12, 2025
Air Force Chief of Staff Kenneth S. Wilsbach is allowing Airmen to wear unit pride T-shirts on Fridays and aircrew to wear nametags with their callsigns daily. The morale-boosting gesture is one of his first official acts as Chief and comes at a time when the Pentagon is cracking down…

The Pentagon Wants to Buy Weapons Faster. What Will It Cost?

Nov. 11, 2025
The emphasis on speed in the Pentagon’s newly unveiled slate of acquisition reforms may come with increased near-term cost increases, analysts say. But according to U.S. defense officials, the new weapons-buying construct provides the military with enough flexibility to prevent runaway budget overruns in major programs.

Air Force Fighter Roadmap Projects Slow Growth for F-35 Fleet

Nov. 10, 2025
The Air Force is projecting relatively limited growth for its main F-35 fleet for the rest of the decade, according to the new fighter roadmap it provided to Congress. That roadmap also calls for the overall fighter fleet to shrink for two more years before starting to grow.