Warner Opposes DOD Cuts
Warner Opposes DOD Cuts: Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman John Warner (R-Va.) and five of his colleagues have expressed their ire over the expected $32 billion defense budget cut for 2007-11. The six on Dec. 16 sent a letter to President Bush outlining their opposition to ending the “modest” growth that, over the past few years, has helped the military recover from the “procurement holiday” of the 1990s.
Raptor Instructors Talk Shop
In training at Tyndall AFB, Fla., F-22As routinely take on six F-15s at once in mock dogfights—and the contest is still not even close, say Raptor pilots. Lt. Col. David Krumm, an F-22A instructor, told the Associated Press news service,...
Edwards Tries New Test Method on C-17
The 418th Flight Test Squadron at Edwards AFB, Calif., is the first unit to “fully employ” a test strategy called “design of experiments” for a C-17 pilot-in-the-loop oscillation test, say Air Force Flight Test Center officials. In conducting a DOE,...
Wynne Awards Airman Bronze Star
During his first trip to Southwest Asia, Air Force Secretary Michael Wynne awarded the Bronze Star to Lt. Col. Ed O’Neal for his actions during a terrorist attack in Khobar, Saudi Arabia, on May 29, 2004. O’Neal helped rescue a...
Texan II Reaches 250,000 Hours
The Air Force’s primary trainer aircraft, the T-6A Texan II, has flown its 250,000 flight hour. Air Education and Training Command officials announced the feat this week, but the milestone took place on Dec. 14 while some 50 Texan IIs...
Air Strikes in SWA
US Air Force A-10s, a B-52, and Predator UAVs helped provide close air support to coalition forces engaged by enemy forces in the vicinity of Orgun-E, Afghanistan, on Dec. 21. The A-10s strafed enemy positions and launched general-purpose 500-pound bombs....
Air Force Wants SBSS Objective Input
The Space and Missile Systems Center at Los Angeles AFB, Calif., plans on Jan. 25-26 to hold an industry discussion about development of a Space Based Space Surveillance Objective System. The proposed SBSS system would be a constellation of electro-optical...
Saudis Choose Eurofighter
Saudis Choose Eurofighter: Saudi Arabia has opted to replace its Tornado and other aircraft—news reports vary on the number—with Eurofighter Typhoon, the fighter produced by a BAE Systems, EADS, and Fimeccanica SpA. consortium. An agreement signed between the Saudi and...
Airmen at Manas Reach Out to Bishkek
Six airmen from Manas Air Base in Kyrgyzstan recently paid a visit to children at a Bishkek hospital as part of the efforts of the Manas Air Base Outreach Society. Donning Santa hats, the airmen sang songs, passed out gifts,...
The Russians Have Come—to the Mountain
General-Lt. Igor Khvorov, commander of the Russian Federation Air Forces’ 37th Strategic Air Army—the Russian ICBM force—recently visited NORAD at Peterson AFB, Colo. He was the honored guest of Adm. Timothy J. Keating, NORAD commander. Khvorov and Keating discussed the...
Boeing Continues Long-run E-4B Work
The Air Force has awarded a contract worth up to $2 billion to Boeing to serve as the product integrator for work on the service’s fleet of four E-4B National Airborne Operations Center aircraft. Boeing has provided logistics support, engineering...
USAF Needs Help Training for NSPS
The Air Force has agreed to pay Centre Consulting of Vienna, Va., $24.8 million over five years to train USAF civilian personnel supervisors to implement the new National Security Personnel System, reports Government Executive. For this money, the company will...
Building Up Sather:
USAF civil engineers at Sather Air Base, near Baghdad Airport in Iraq, are working to complete some $3.3 million in projects to improve the quality of life for US forces deployed to the facility. One key “highly anticipated” project, reports...
ASC Airman Earns Bronze:
Lt. Col. Dean C. Phillips Jr. received a Bronze Star for meritorious service as operations officer and site commander for the Coalition Military Assistance Training Team, New Al Muthana AB, Iraq. Phillips, who is chief of the Joint Strike Fighter...
Making Chaff for Airlifters:
There is a unit at Ali Base, Iraq, the 777th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron Ammo Flight, that has six airmen who handle all the countermeasure requirements for C-130s of both the US and Iraqi Air Forces. They maintain a munitions stockpile...
Air Sorties in the Global War on Terrorism
December 21, 2005 Sortie Type OIF OEF OIF/OEF Total ISR 10 6 – 16 CAS/Armed Recon 54 24 – 78 Airlift – – 200 200 Air refueling – – 28 28 Total 64 30 228 322 OIF=Operation Iraqi Freedom OEF=Operation...