Technicians at the Ogden Air Logistics Center, Hill AFB, Utah, were able to repair a damaged F-16—slated for a one-way ticket out of the active inventory—avoiding several thousand dollars in commercial repair costs and lengthy down time, according to ALC officials. Technicians of the 649th Combat Logistics Support Squadron have the equipment—in this case, what’s called a production fixture that supports the full aircraft as they removed load bearing panels—and expertise “necessary to perform repairs on aircraft that would otherwise be removed from the active inventory,” said 1st Lt. Joshua Holmes, 649th maintenance officer in charge. The fighter had an inch-long crack around one wing-attach bolt, calling for replacement of the left wing closure beam, said Holmes.
The U.S. military struck key Iranian nuclear sites June 21 in an operation that was intended to shut down Iran’s nuclear program but which was not aimed at the country’s leadership. U.S. Air Force bombers and submarine-launched cruise missiles struck three sites in the early hours of June 22: Fordow, Natanaz,…