Hog Preview

The Air Force will keep all its A-10 Warthogs and almost completely rebuild them, according to Gen. Michael Moseley, Chief of Staff. At the July 7 inauguration ceremonies for the F-35 strike fighter, Moseley told Air Force Magazine that the...

Hog Heart

Money to upgrade the A-10’s TF-34 engine “fell out” of the upcoming five-year spending plan—the 2008 POM—according to the Gen. Michael Moseley. However, he said that he hasn’t given up hope. In the Chief of Staff’s words: “That modification, that...

USAF STOVL Fading

The case for the Air Force buying some number of F-35Bs—the short takeoff and vertical landing version of the Joint Strike Fighter—definitely seems to be waning, as we reported earlier this year. Gen. Michael Moseley acknowledged that one reason is...

Foreign Raptors

Foreign Raptors: Gen. Michael Moseley thinks he would be comfortable with allied nations operating the super-sophisticated F-22. (The House has included a provision for Raptor foreign sales in its version of the 2007 defense appropriations bill.) However, the Air Force...

A Coming Trend

A Coming Trend: The Air Force has created its first active-duty associate squadron—the 30th Airlift Squadron at the municipal airport in Cheyenne, Wyo. This is part of USAF’s ongoing effort to re-invent the Total Force concept. The 30th AS, which falls administratively under the active 463rd Airlift Group at Little Rock AFB, Ark., will work operationally with the Wyoming Air National Guard’s 153rd Airlift Wing at Cheyenne, where the active and Guard airmen will share the aircraft assigned to the 153rd AW. Right now the 30th AS has only an initial staff of 10 airmen, but it should have its full complement of 74 by October.

Installing C-17 Regularity

Installing C-17 Regularity: Air Mobility Command has changed its modus operandi for C-17 operations in Southwest Asia—placing two squadrons in the theater for an entire 120-day air expeditionary force rotation. AMC leaders found that the old method of sending C-17...

Looking for Free Thinkers

Looking for Free Thinkers: Peter Teets, former undersecretary of the Air Force and DOD executive agent for space, believes it is past time to “develop systems that integrate space professionals across the services.” Teets, who was speaking at the 2006...

Gaining a Warfighting “Ethos”:

At least one current space leader couldn’t agree more with Peter Teets (above) that a future space cadre must include all services. Lt. Gen. Michael Hamel, head of Space and Missile Systems Center, Los Angeles AFB, Calif., also would include...

Looking at the Downside?

Looking at the Downside?: The folks in New Mexico may have breathed a sigh of relief when the Air Force announced that it would station a unit of new F-22A Raptors at Holloman AFB, N.M., after it retires the base’s...

Another Missile Heard From

Various news reports note that India on Sunday test-fired a long-range, nuclear-capable missile, but it also went into the drink shortly after takeoff, like North Korea’s Taepo Dong II. This launch has brought little international alarm, however, the timing probably...

Making New Friends

Making New Friends: Gen. Tom Hobbins, commander of US Air Forces in Europe, has made his first visit to Africa, where he met with various military leaders in North Africa, attempting to open new venues for cross-national training. Hobbins and...

Weasel Simulates SWA

Weasel Simulates SWA: Shaw Air Force Base in South Carolina just played host to Dynamic Weasel 06-2 in which some 70 fighter, attack, helicopter, and command and control aircraft flew missions intended to replicate combat operations in Southwest Asia. Adding...

Air Sorties in the Global War on Terrorism

July 7-9, 2006 Sortie Type OIF OEF OIF/OEF Total ISR 44 21 65 CAS/Armed Recon 130 80 210 Airlift 450 450 Air refueling 124 124 Total 174 101 574 849 OIF=Operation Iraqi Freedom OEF=Operation Enduring Freedom ISR=Intelligence-surveillance-reconnaissance