Air Force officials say the service plans to purchase 141 combat search and rescue aircraft—called CSAR-X, for now—to replace its current force of 101 HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopters. Lt. Col. Dave Morgan, CSAR program element monitor, told reporters that USAF...

Morgan said that the Air Force built its CSAR-X requirements document by studying hundreds of missions, such as the one flown by the 2004 Mackay Trophy winners. At bottom line, he said, the objective is to get an “achievable” requirement,...

Command for US Air Forces in Europe formally has changed from Gen. Robert H. Foglesong to Gen. William T. Hobbins. (DR 11/10/05) At the ceremony, which took place at Ramstein AB, Germany, on Dec. 6, Hobbins praised Foglesong, particularly for...

The Air Force, said Lt. Col. Tim Healy, air staff special aircraft requirements deputy division chief, is looking at options for a new light cargo-medium transport aircraft. He told reporters that USAF has completed an initial capabilities document that identifies...

Readers may remember the aggressive (and successful) fight waged by South Dakota Republican Sen. John Thune to save Ellsworth AFB, S.D., from the 2005 BRAC chopping block. The freshman legislator has been checking out potential new missions to add to...

The Navy is about to “go back to the future” by establishing a Navy Expeditionary Combat Command that will oversee units tailored to operate in rivers and coastal environments such as the Swift Boat fleet of the Vietnam War. Otto...

The US Army’s forward operating base Qayyarah West, Iraq—known in theater as Q-West—is the front line for approximately 200 civil engineering airmen with the 557th Expeditionary RED HORSE Squadron. “We’re kind of like a contractor, and we support the Army...

Despite threats from budgetary buzzards, Joint Strike Fighter development continues, with Pratt & Whitney reporting that it has completed the first flight-test engine that will power the F-35 next year. P&W has been the lead propulsion system on the JSF...

Air Force civil engineers have been working hard at Kandahar AB, Afghanistan, to keep air operations at the base going at a steady clip. Just in the past three months, they have repaired holes in the runway (a recent 200-foot...

The Air Force Command and Control and Intelligence-Surveillance-Reconnaissance Center at Langley AFB, Va., packed up its stuff and moved—setting up temporarily in a building just off base with the National Institute of Aerospace in Hampton Roads, Va. The Hampton Roads...

Romania and the United States have signed an agreement that establishes guidelines on hosting American bases in the Eastern European country. According to Associated Press news service, Romanian Foreign Minister Mihai Razvan Ungureanu said, “It’s what our grandparents and parents...

The B-52 is getting up there (last one rolled off the line in 1962), but USAF has an ongoing effort to keep the BUFF at the top of its form, including adding upgraded avionics. The Air Force has awarded a...

Air Force communications personnel took a hard look at their operations and made changes that took “help me” response times from 30 minutes to around “instantaneous,” says Capt. Jeff Devine Jr., information systems flight commander for the 386th Expeditionary Communications...

The Air National Guard’s 110th Fighter Wing, Battle Creek, Mich., has received an Air Force Outstanding Unit Award with Valor. The Battle Creek Enquirer reports that the 110th earned the award for actions in Operation Southern Watch and Operation Iraqi...

According to the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, active duty personnel who received “traumatic injuries” during operations in Afghanistan and Iraq will get payments of at least $25,000 to $100,000 before Christmas. Service members or their beneficiaries must complete a certification...

Small, community-level volunteer groups dedicated to helping deployed troops or their families can compete for grants to fund their projects through the “Newman’s Own Awards” program, overseen by the Fisher House Foundation. The total amount to be distributed is $75,000,...

December 5, 2005 Sortie Type OIF OEF OIF/OEF Total ISR 14 5 – 19 CAS/Armed Recon 46 23 – 69 Airlift – – 160 160 Air refueling – – 33 33 Total 60 28 193 281 OIF=Operation Iraqi Freedom OEF=Operation...