The Air Force may be returning to a structure in which aircraft maintainers work for operations. Chief of Staff Gen. Michael Moseley would like to see the service “structured by mission and not by function,” reports SSgt. J.G. Buzanowski. Moseley’s predecessor—Gen. John P. Jumper—made the shift away from this arrangement primarily to give young maintenance officers a more dedicated career path to maintenance leadership positions. Now, Moseley believes that “moving maintenance units to the flying squadrons is best” and notes that the “partnership between crew chief and aircrew goes back to our roots.” However, he says that this structure may not suit all flying squadrons. He is gathering feedback from squadron, group, and wing commanders. Most appear to agree, but Moseley says the verdict is still out. “I’m convinced this is absolutely the right thing to do for fighters, but I’m still getting input on whether it should apply to UAVs, airlifters, tankers, and special operations aircraft as well.”

Chief of Staff Gen. Michael Moseley held a meeting last week to begin work to extend advanced survival, evasion, resistance, and escape training to all airmen. Moseley expressed concern that the Air Force may not have prepared its airmen to...

The Air National Guard posted another slow recruiting month in July, achieving only 87 percent of its goal of 907 recruits. That puts the Air Guard down for six months in a row. However, its strong showing earlier in the...

The Mississippi and Utah Air National Guards worked together to aid rescue operations for the six miners trapped in a coal mine in Utah, reports MSgt. Burke Baker. The 172nd Airlift Wing at Allen C. Thompson Field, Miss., flew one...

The rate of Predator unmanned aerial vehicle mishaps is on the rise mostly due to human error, according to Robert Nullmeyer, a Mesa, Arizona-based research psychologist assisting the Air Force Research Laboratory. Speaking at the Unmanned Systems Symposium and Exhibition...

The Navy has awarded Northrop Grumman a six-year, $635.8 million contract to conduct the first at-sea carrier launches and recoveries using a fixed-wing unmanned aerial vehicle, the X-47B. The program now known as Unmanned Combat Air System-Demonstration is the remaining...

Air Education and Training Command wants some assistance in conducting flying and maintenance training for a couple of helicopters—the Russian-made Mi-17 and Bell’s Huey II. AETC has issued a sources sought to see if there are any parties interested in...

The Air Force has awarded a Bronze Star Medal with Valor to SrA. Phillip King, assigned to the 95th Security Forces Squadron at Edwards AFB, Calif. During a year-long deployment to Afghanistan in 2006, King was part of a convoy...

Air Force Reserve Command’s 94th Airlift Wing at Dobbins ARB, Ga., worked with the US Postal Service to arrange a special “cancellation” to commemorate the Air Force’s 60th Anniversary. From Sept. 18 to Oct. 18, the postmaster at Marietta, Ga.,...

The Air Force has presented its Modeling and Simulation Moody Suter Lifetime Achievement Award to Jacqueline Henningsen, the director for studies and analyses, assessments, and lessons learned. Henningsen has spent 20 years on modeling and simulation work within the Air...

Aug. 9, 2007 Sortie Type OIF OEF OIF/OEF Total ISR 11 17 28 CAS/Armed Recon 34 55 89 Airlift 138 138 Air refueling 50 50 Total 45 72 188 305 OIF=Operation Iraqi Freedom OEF=Operation Enduring Freedom ISR=Intelligence-surveillance-reconnaissance Airlift includes Horn...