Lt. Gen. William Shelton, commander of 14th Air Force and STRATCOM’s Joint Functional Component Command for Space, formally received his third star during a ceremony Jan. 8 at Vandenberg AFB, Calif. Gen. Kevin Chilton, STRATCOM commander, presided over the ceremony; Air Force Space Command head, Gen. Robert Kehler, also participated. Shelton assumed command of 14th AF in May 2005; his duties expanded in July 2006 when he took the helm of the JFCC-S. The Senate confirmed him for the third star on Dec. 19. (USAF report by SrA. Stephen Cadette)
Secretary of Defense Austin Lloyd III met with his counterparts from Australia, Japan and the Philippines to discuss bolstering defense ties on May 2. The discussion included plans for joint F-35 exercises with Japan and Australia in the coming years.