A US Air Force B-1B bomber providing close air support near Musah Qal’eh in Afghanistan Tuesday fired a GBU-31 Joint Direct Attack Munition on Taliban extremists engaging coalition ground forces with small arms and rocket-propelled grenades—the attack stopped. French Air...

In a separate engagement (see above), but still around Musah Qal’eh in Afghanistan, USAF A-10s, flying close air support with a B-1B and a Predator unmanned aerial vehicle, strafed Taliban extremists firing upon coalition ground forces. The A-10s fired cannon...

On Tuesday, the newly installed Air National Guard director, Lt. Gen. Craig McKinley, told the Daily Report that since he assumed his new position in May he has been getting his “left limit and right limit” from both Air Force...

One of the initiatives being hatched between USAF and ANG would fold reservists more formally into Air Staff directorates, new ANG director, Lt. Gen. Craig McKinley, told the Daily Report. McKinley said that he has broached the matter with current...

One of the first concrete changes that the new ANG director, Lt. Gen. Craig McKinley, has encountered in his new post is that of receiving a National Guard Bureau title—Vice Chief-Air—bestowed upon him by NGB chief Lt. Gen. Steven Blum....

Vice President Dick Cheney on Monday spoke to Guardsmen and Reservists gathered at Selfridge ANGB, Mich., singling out for praise the various units and services represented, including the 127th “Air” Wing, per his printed remarks. He hinted that it was...

An Air Combat Command accident investigation into the April 5, 2006 crash of an F-16CJ Viper from the 20th Fighter Wing at Shaw AFB, S.C., finds that the pilot was suffering from physical fatigue generated by flying five high-g sorties...

In a new Letter to Airmen, Air Force Secretary Michael Wynne writes that Air Force, Air National Guard, and Air Force Reserve Command “training and operations make it impossible to differentiate between the three components.” He goes on to note that the days of the “strategic reserve” are gone and adds, “our total force sacrifices daily through extended deployments in the most challenging missions we have.” Wynne’s bottom line: “Total Force has moved from a future concept to today’s reality.”

US Air Forces in Europe created the 501st Combat Support Wing just over a year ago to support seven geographically separated units in Great Britain and, according to Lt. Gen. Robert D. Bishop Jr., it is doing its job. Bishop,...

According to the Grand Forks (N.D.) Herald, the 319th Air Refueling Wing at Grand Forks AFB, N.D., now has its first female commander. Col. William Bender turned over command to Col. Diane Hull on Tuesday. Hull has been serving as...

Two Democratic Senators—Joseph Biden (Del.) and Jack Reed (R.I.)—just returned from a trip to Iraq and took exception to the Administration’s aversion to calling the situation in Iraq a civil war, reports the Congressional newspaper, The Hill. Biden, who is...

Maj. Jeffrey Prindle, an Air Force Reservist with the 315th Airlift Wing, Charleston AFB, S.C., believes that the 50 airmen assigned to his command are making a decided difference in Iraqi affairs. The commander of Det. 6, 732nd Expeditionary Security...

Aviano AB, Italy, has a new $36.9 million hospital that opened to visitors Tuesday, reports Stars and Stripes. The 18-bed hospital, whose staff actually has been treating patients since the beginning of the month, took over the space allocated to...

July 11, 2006 Sortie Type OIF OEF OIF/OEF Total ISR 12 6 18 CAS/Armed Recon 38 27 65 Airlift 150 150 Air refueling 39 39 Total 50 33 189 272 OIF=Operation Iraqi Freedom OEF=Operation Enduring Freedom ISR=Intelligence-surveillance-reconnaissance