On Oct. 1, the 33rd Fighter Wing at Eglin AFB, Fla., formally embraced its new role as the lead joint training wing for the F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter as it transitioned from Air Combat Command to Air Education and Training Command. The wing has shed its F-15 force and expects to see its first F-35s in late summer 2010. “Today begins a new chapter for the Nomads under AETC; you will continue the air dominance legacy for the 33rd,” said Maj. Gen. Gregory Feest, commander of AETC’s 19th Air Force. Col. David Hlatky, who took command of the wing, said: “The F-35 will deliver precision munitions in ways and places no other aircraft can. A lot is riding on the success of this program. We’ve got to get it right and we will.” (Includes Team Eglin report by Leslie Brown and report by Ashley Wright; also see Northwest Florida News report)
Air Force exercises in the Indo-Pacific may soon get even bigger and more robust, as lawmakers move to invest more than $620 million in such efforts. The bulk of that money, contained in a $150 billion reconciliation package currently making its way through Congress, is $532.6 million for earmarked for…