Daily Report

Nov. 20, 2008

Bomb Wing Undergoes Nuclear Inspection

The 2nd Bomb Wing, a nuclear-capable B-52 bomber unit at Barksdale AFB, La., earlier this month underwent its first no-notice nuclear surety inspection in more than 15 years. According to a release from Barksdale yesterday, more than 45 experienced inspectors...

Young Defends F-22 Moves

Pentagon weapons czar John Young told House lawmakers yesterday that his recent actions regarding the Air Force’s F-22 program comply with Congressional direction, minimize financial risk to the taxpayer, and are consistent with the Office of the Secretary of Defense’s...

Welcome, New Old Friend

The 437th Airlift Wing at Charleston AFB, S.C., on Tuesday took delivery of the first of 10 new C-17 transports that it will receive to bolster its existing C-17 fleet. This airframe is the first new C-17 to arrive at...

Third C-130 AMP Test Aircraft Finished

Boeing announced yesterday that it has completed the 10-month process of installing the avionics upgrades on the third and final C-130 test aircraft under the Air Force’s C-130 avionics modernization program. The company expects this aircraft, a C-130H3 model, to...

Not Hung Up on Four Percent

Adm. Michael Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, in talking with Pentagon reporters earlier this week about his newly released CJCS Guidance, said his priorities haven’t changed. He views continuing “to secure our interests in the broader Middle...

Arlington Ceremony for B-52 Six

During a special ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery Nov. 14, airmen gathered with family and friends to bury the remains of the six airmen who were killed in the July 21 crash of a B-52 bomber off the coast of...

Smooth Ride

A runway reopened Nov. 17 at Kirkuk Regional Air Base in Iraq after being offline for more than three months while a team of about 40 RED HORSE airmen, supported by Iraqi contract workers, resurfaced it. The 8,535-foot strip, designated...

AFSOUTH Eyes Caribbean Nex

t: Air Forces Southern, fresh off of the smashing success of its first Operation Southern Partner partnership-building activities in South America, is already planning for the next iteration in this series of subject-matter exchanges with partner air forces in its...

GPS Ground Control Gets Boost

Boeing said this week it is incorporating improved capabilities to the technology that it is supplying for the Air Force’s Operational Control Segment, the satellite ground-control system for GPS navigation satellites. In a release Nov. 17, the company said the...

Electrical Malfunction Doomed Predator

A catastrophic electrical system overload caused the crash of an MQ-1 Predator unmanned aerial vehicle June 2 about two kilometers north of Joint Base Balad, Iraq, Air Combat Command announced Tuesday. The overload, associated with a problem with the aircraft’s...

Air Sorties in War on Terrorism, Southwest Asia

Nov. 17, 2008 Sortie Type OIF OEF OIF/OEF Total YTD ISR 31 17 48 11,812 CAS/Armed Recon 48 54 102 33,060 Airlift 120 120 41,840 Air refueling 41 41 16,187 Total 311 102,899 OIF=Operation Iraqi Freedom OEF=Operation Enduring Freedom ISR=Intelligence-surveillance-reconnaissance...