Could Scramble F-15s

The commander of Continental US NORAD, Air Force Maj. Gen. Hank Morrow, says that F-15 fighters assigned to support CONR operations could fly if needed. The Air Force has barred all non-mission-critical F-15 flights following a crash last week. In...

The “Red-Headed Stepchild”

The condition of the Air Force has started to worry many in Congress, but few more than Rep. Ellen Tauscher (D-Calif.) She is concerned about the lack of new investment. “Here is the problem,” said Tauscher, chair of the House...

Don’t We All

Rep. Ellen Tauscher, in her meeting with reporters (see above), delivered a ringing vote of confidence for the current Secretary of the Air Force, Michael Wynne. “By the way, I think we’re very lucky to have somebody like Secretary Wynne,...

The Art of the Windscreen

According to one technician at Warner Robins Air Logistics Center in Georgia who repairs canopies and windscreens for F-15 fighters, the work is “more an art than a science.” In a report by Gene Rector of The Telegraph, Bridgette Wilderman...

Job Problems for Reservists?

At a hearing Thursday, Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.) released data from a year-old Pentagon survey in which some 11,000 reservists returning from the war on terror reported problems in getting their jobs back; 22,000 said they had lost seniority; and...

Enhancing Urban CAS

The latest version of Atlantic Strike just concluded at Avon Park, Fla., where airmen, marines, and soldiers came together to hone their skills in urban close air support. Capt. Nathan Broshear reports that participants included Air Force and Marine joint...

Germans to the Rescue

Stars and Stripes reports that Germany may extend a loan to the top contractor on the new Kaiserslautern community center to get the problem-plagued project started again. The Air Force Office of Special Investigation and German officials have been looking...

Drug Program RC-26s Aid Firefighting:

The California Air National Guard’s 144th Fighter Wing at Fresno has been flying two four-hour missions daily in RC-26 ISR aircraft to assist firefighters battling southern California blazes. The Air Guard has a total of 11 RC-26 Metroliners, which come...

The Egyptian Connection:

Air Force Reserve Command’s 336th Air Refueling Squadron at March ARB, Calif., flew two weeks’ worth of flying operations with the Egyptian Air Force last month. SSgt. Amy Abbott reports that the US airmen flew day and night sorties, conducting...

Streamlining Care for Wounded Vets:

VA and DOD plan to launch a pilot program later this month to assess whether the two agencies can move to a single physical examination to cover “fitness for duty” and “disability pay” determinations. A release from the VA states...

Air Sorties in the Global War on Terrorism

Nov. 6, 2007 Sortie Type OIF OEF OIF/OEF Total ISR 23 8 31 CAS/Armed Recon 53 41 94 Airlift 128 128 Air refueling 40 40 Total 76 49 168 293 OIF=Operation Iraqi Freedom OEF=Operation Enduring Freedom ISR=Intelligence-surveillance-reconnaissance Airlift includes Horn...