Daily Report

The Air Force is looking for ways to end US reliance on Russian-made RD-180 rocket engines for national security space launches, said service acquisition executive William LaPlante. The Air Force is already implementing recommendations from the panel commissioned to examine...

Amari AB, Estonia—Ten countries and some 4,700 personnel, including 475 US airmen, are participating in this year’s Saber Strike exercise in the Baltic countries of Latvia, Estonia, and Lithuania. This year’s exercise, which runs through June 20, includes eight F-16s...

Twentieth Air Force, which oversees the nation’s Minuteman III ICBM force, is putting the final touches on a beta test program for the new tour-rotation construct it intends to implement for missileers. The 90-day beta test of the three-plus-three rotation...

Lt. Gen. Darryl Roberson took command of 3rd Air Force and 17th Expeditionary Air Force, filling the leadership vacancy left by the retirement of Lt. Gen. Craig Franklin earlier this year. “Together with our allies and partners, our friends, there...

Senior F-35 program leaders met at Eglin AFB, Fla., last week in part to see training operations with the strike fighter and to have a chance to talk to its pilots and maintainers. The maintainers have offered many good suggestions,...

Defense acquisition chief Frank Kendall said he’s seeing positive results from the series of Better Buying Power initiatives. There are now “affordability targets or caps on” 30 major acquisition programs, he said at a Pentagon press conference on June 13....

Some two weeks after arriving there, an RQ-4 Global Hawk remotely piloted aircraft took off from Misawa AB, Japan, marking the first operational mission originating from Japan for this aircraft type, according to a base release. The June 6 mission...

The Air Force Research Lab contracted Lockheed Martin to adapt the company’s commercial wind-velocity-sensing laser to improve the accuracy of C-130 and C-17 cargo airdrops, announced the company. “Airdrop missions require several flyovers to accurately determine wind readings, but our...

The second Fisher House located at Travis AFB, Calif., accepted its first overnight guests just days after its official opening, announced base officials. The two-story, 13,000-square-foot Fisher House II features 16 fully furnished bedroom suites, each with a private bathroom,...

A Veterans Affairs Department audit found “a strong basis to commence immediate action” to correct “systemic” problems within the VA medical care system. Among the findings, the scheduling process for care is “overly complicated” and creates “high potential to create...

Thanks to all of the aspiring wingmen who responded to our Area 52 Fun Hangar challenge in the May issue of Wingman Magazine. Here are the correct answers: a-5, C-124 Globemaster II; b-4, F-117 Nighthawk; c-8, C-54 Skymaster; d-1, Mirage...