Gen. Lance W. Lord, the soon-to-retire Air Force Space Command commander, heaped accolades on the airmen of the 341st Space Wing, Malmstrom AFB, Mont., during a recent visit, remarking that, in 2005, they had achieved a 99.792 percent alert rate—the highest for the wing in the past 10 years. Lord says two things contributed to the record rate: commitment by the airmen and commitment by the nation to modernize the ICBM force. During the past 10 years, he said, the Pentagon has spent more than $8 billion on the missile fleet.
Trainees in Basic Military Training and technical school no longer have the option to try alternate PT drills if they fail an initial assessment, according to a policy change the Air Force made in April. The move is part of a larger shift out of the classroom and into hands-on,…