The Air Force will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the rank of chief master sergeant on Dec. 1 with a special ceremony at the National Museum of the United States Air Force on the grounds of Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio. “This is a once-in-a-lifetime event which will be both memorable and inspiring for all those who attend,” said CMSgt. Michael Ronayne, secretary of the Chiefs’ Group at Wright-Patterson. Retired CMSAF Robert Gaylor, USAF’s fifth CMSAF, will be the guest speaker for the nearly 200 guests that have already signed up, including retired chiefs who were pinned when the rank was introduced on Dec 1. 1959. (Wright-Patterson report by Chandra Lloyd)
The Air Force on March 12 awarded contract modifications worth a combined $2.4 billion to Boeing to procure an undisclosed number of E-7 Wedgetail as part of the program's engineering and manufacturing development phase and continue work on the airborne battle management aircraft’s radar.