Daily Report

Oct. 3, 2011

First MC-130J Enters Inventory

The Air Force last week received its first new-build MC-130J Combat Shadow II special-mission aircraft. Lt. Gen. Eric Fiel, Air Force Special Operations Command boss, flew the aircraft from Lockheed Martin’s production facility in Marietta, Ga., to Cannon AFB, N.M.,...

A Bad Year for Terrorists

Anwar al Awlaki’s death in Yemen was a “major blow” to al Qaeda and marked “another significant milestone” in the broader effort to defeat the terrorist network, said President Obama. CIA armed remotely piloted aircraft killed Awlaki, a US-born cleric...

Dempsey Becomes Joint Chiefs Chairman

Army Gen. Martin Dempsey succeeded Navy Adm. Mike Mullen as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. “Marty’s strategic vision is the right one for this time of transition as we craft the joint force that can defeat the wide...

China, or Something Like It

The AirSea Battle construct is “not targeted at a particular place,” but it’s easy to understand why people might think it’s built around China, said Lt. Gen. Herbert Carlisle. During a speech last week, the deputy chief of staff for...

Stealth Support

The 411th Flight Test Squadron at Edwards AFB, Calif., played an instrumental role in the Air Force-wide efforts to get the F-22 fleet cleared to fly after a grounding went into effect over pilot safety concerns. “Basically we turned over...

Reserve Squadron Stands Up

Air Force Reserve Command stood up the 931st Security Forces Squadron at McConnell AFB, Kan. The unit will focus on antiterrorism, unit protection, investigations, and information security. “The 931st Security Forces Squadron’s primary duty is to train for deployments to...

New Name, Same Mission

NORAD’s air sovereignty alert mission is now called aerospace control alert. “The name is changing, in case you didn’t know,” said Lt. Gen. Harry Wyatt, Air National Guard director, last month at AFA’s Air and Space Conference in National Harbor,...

Last-built C-5B Gets a Facelift

The last C-5B produced for the Air Force is getting an overhaul. Lockheed Martin inducted the aircraft, tail number 0045, on Sept. 29 into its assembly line in Marietta, Ga., for conversion to the C-5M Super Galaxy standard. The upgrades...

COLA Loses Some Fizz

The Defense Department reduced the cost-of-living allowance for service members and their families living overseas. The changes took effect on Saturday. The total reduction will vary based on the service member’s rank, years of service, number of dependents, and duty...