Step by Step

The new Raptor unit at Elmendorf AFB, Alaska, though it recently sent off a couple of F-22s to intercept some Russian bombers, still hasn’t declared initial operational capability. The unit is inching closer, completing a mock bomb drop earlier this...

Take Notice

The US military’s expansion on the island of Guam did not come up as a topic of discussion during Adm. Timothy Keating’s recent trip to China. But the admiral, who as the commander of US Pacific Command is the highest...

Maturing Key Jamming Technology

The Air Force is pushing ahead with efforts to field a standoff airborne electronic attack capability, according to the head of Air Combat Command’s electronic attack requirements shop, and is sticking to an initial operational capability date of 2015 for...

An EA Role for Raptor and Lightning II?

The capabilities of both the F-22 Raptor and the F-35 Lightening II are both being taken into account as the services develop the airborne electronic attack “system of systems,” said Maj. Jeff Salem, head of Air Combat Command’s electronic attack...

Bring Back Our ROVERs

After employing them in combat, Air Force Reserve Command’s 442nd Fighter Wing at Whiteman AFB, Mo., lost its Remotely Operated Video Enhanced Receivers to other deploying units, but it is now getting some of the new units USAF ordered. The...

They Are the Rage

Air Combat Command now has enough of the new earplugs developed by Air Force Research Lab and commercial companies for all its pilots, who praise the plugs because they not only block noise but also enable radio communication. Before the...

Dropping In at Kwajalein

The B-2 force deployed to Andersen AFB, Guam, last week dropped inert Joint Direct Attack Munitions on the Kwajalein Atoll in the Pacific, marking the first aerial bombing mission for the Ronald Reagan Ballistic Missile Defense Test Site. The 393rd...

Working Together

During the latest in the “Warfighter Talks” series between the Air Force and Army, the service Chiefs of Staff signed a new memorandum of agreement that signals their intent to provide direct liaisons at various levels to engage in a...

Down and Out in Berkeley

Some residents of Berkeley, Calif., want to put a measure before city voters that would require a public hearing before letting military recruiters set up a new office within 600 feet of homes, parks, public health clinics, libraries, schools, or...

Three Bronzes for EOD

The Air Force has awarded Bronze Star medals to three explosive ordnance disposal specialists at Hurlburt Field, Fla. They are SMSgt. Marin Cortez, SSgt. Brad Ferguson, and SSgt. Brian Shepherd. All three supported the Army’s 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 10th...

The Gilbert Bridge

A ceremony last week marked the opening of a new bridge—the Maj. Troy L. Gilbert Bridge—that enables personnel at Luke AFB, Ariz., to travel from one side of the base to the other without crossing a public road. The base...

AEDC Fellow Dies at 84

Robert O. Dietz, a recognized ground test expert nationally and internationally who was one of the first individuals to become a fellow of Arnold Engineering Development Center, died Jan. 19 at his home in Manchester, Tenn. Dietz served as Director...

Air Sorties in the Global War on Terrorism

Jan. 25-26, 2008 Sortie Type OIF OEF OIF/OEF Total YTD ISR 34 16 50 637 CAS/Armed Recon 97 88 185 2,169 Airlift 276 276 3,176 Air refueling 86 86 1,014 Total 131 104 362 597 6,996 OIF=Operation Iraqi Freedom OEF=Operation...