Daily Report

April 20, 2011

Still in the Fray

While NATO is now in charge of air operations over Libya, US military aircraft continue to play a critical role in the mission of protecting Libyan civilians and enforcing the no-fly zone, said alliance officials Tuesday. Alone on Monday, a...

J-20 Back in the Air

The Chinese J-20 stealth fighter has reportedly returned to flight testing, completing a publicly witnessed flight in recent days that was much longer than its first reported flight back in January. Britain’s Daily Mail reported Tuesday that a J-20 aircraft...

Keeping Orbital Operations Safe

The Air Force’s Phased Array Warning System radars, known as Pave PAWS, earlier this month played an important role in preventing the evacuation of the International Space Station. Data from their monitoring of a roughly six-inch chunk of debris on...

Used USAF F-15s for Israel?

Israel may seek to procure a squadron of used USAF F-15s to bridge the anticipated gap until it receives its first F-35 strike fighters. This is one of the options, including upgrades to its existing F-15s and F-16s, that the...

Who Wants Out?

Air Force Materiel Command intends to survey its civilian workforce beginning May 1 to gauge interest in how many employees would be interested in early retirement or voluntary separation. The command is considering a Fiscal 2011-12 voluntary early retirement authority/voluntary...

First F-35 Full-Mission Simulator Arrives at Eglin

The F-35 strike fighter’s first Full Mission Simulator has arrived at Eglin AFB. Fla., announced prime contractor Lockheed Martin. Preparation and assembly activities are now underway at Eglin’s F-35 Integrated Training Center so that simulator use may commence this fall....

Sheppard Firefighters Battle Wildfires

Nearly 30 firefighters at Sheppard AFB, Tex., helped battle fast-moving wildfires near base housing and played a key role in preventing them from wreaking greater havoc. “We made the decision early on to take two of our crash vehicles from...

Light Work-up

Hawker Beechcraft’s AT-6 is currently undergoing weapons certification testing at the Air Force’s Barry Goldwater Range in Arizona. Flown by members of the Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve Command Test Center staging from the nearby Gila Bend Auxiliary...

Afghan Pilots Check Off Another Training Milestone

The first two Afghan air force pilots to complete the 16-month basic aviator training in the United States are now qualified as co-pilots of the Mi-17 helicopter, the primary rotary-wing asset in the AAF’s fleet. First Lieutenant Abdul Saboor Amin...

Fifth C-17 Going Down Under

Australia has signed the agreement with the US government to acquire a fifth C-17 transport via a foreign military sale, announced C-17 manufacturer Boeing. The additional airframe will bolster the Royal Australian Air Force’s ability to support international humanitarian-support and...