The Air Force plans to cut some 25 percent of its Public Affairs force that produce base newspapers, slicing 200 out of 800 airmen. The remaining 600 will shift—if they haven’t already—to full court press on the World Wide Web. The result, officials believe, will be a stronger and faster connection to Air Force personnel and their families, wherever they are. CMSgt. Janice Conner, the PA career field manager, says, “With the new Web management system, we can post content to Air Force Web sites within eight minutes.” In the old paper stream, it would take PA from “three to 10 days” to get an article out, she said. Some newspapers, including the Space and Missile Times that has operated for some 50 years, already have printed their last paper copies.
Air Force depots are not typically meant for quick repair jobs, but during Operation Epic Fury, the service moved some of its stateside heavy maintenance capability forward to fix battle-damaged aircraft closer to the fight.
