The full Senate after floor debate Thursday confirmed Gen. George Casey Jr. as the next Army Chief of Staff. His nomination riled several lawmakers, making it out of the Senate Armed Services Committee but, unlike the relatively easy pass through for Adm. William Fallon to replace Casey as head of US Central Command, it was the subject of floor debate Thursday afternoon.
It'll take up to 18 months for Lockheed Martin to deliver the 100 or so F-35s that went directly from production line to storage, awaiting the completion of Tech Refresh 3 testing. Customers haven't complained about the order in which the backlog is being delivered.