Daily Report

Oct. 1, 2013

First Sequestration, Now This

Congress on Monday failed to reach agreement on a spending bill to fund the federal government in the new fiscal year that begins on Tuesday, forcing the first partial shutdown of the federal government in 17 years. “This is an...

F-35 Contracts Finalized

The Defense Department and Lockheed Martin finalized the contracts for the sixth and seventh lots of F-35 low-rate initial production. LRIP 6, for 36 jets, has a value of $4.4 billion; LRIP 7, for 35 aircraft, is worth $3.4 billion,...

Eighteenth Air Force Celebrates 10th Anniversary

On Tuesday, 18th Air Force, Air Mobility Command’s sole numbered air force, celebrates its 10th anniversary. Born from the consolidation of AMC’s 15th AF and 21st AF, the command activated 18th AF on Oct. 1, 2003, at Scott AFB, Ill.,...

KC-135 Makes Emergency Landing on Spanish Island

A KC-135 tanker assigned to McConnell AFB, Kan., had to make an emergency landing on the Spanish island of Mallorca on Monday due to a suspected fuel leak, reported Stars and Stripes. The tanker touched down at Sol San Juan...

Cannon Maintenance Group Recognized

The 27th Special Operations Maintenance Group at Cannon AFB, N.M., is the recipient of one of the Defense Secretary’s 2013 field-level maintenance awards, according to a Pentagon release. The group was the sole Air Force unit recognized this year in...

Mobility Advisors Visit Angola

Mobility support advisors from the 621st Contingency Response Wing at JB McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, N.J., last month visited Luanda, Angola, to exchange ideas with Angolan airmen on airfield security and flight-line safety. These air advisors from the 818th Mobility Support Advisory Squadron...

South Korea Reboots F-X Competition

Despite news reports in August that Boeing’s F-15SE Silent Eagle was the last contender standing in South Korea’s F-X fighter competition, South Korean defense acquisition officials have reportedly opted against procuring the jet and reopened the competition. This development seemingly...

ThNDR for Lightning

The baseline F-35 strike fighter doesn’t have a directed infrared countermeasures system to protect it against heat-seeking missiles, but Northrop Grumman announced last month it is readying a system called “Threat Nullification Defensive Resource,” or ThNDR, in anticipation that a...