Shades of Blue

The decision by Defense Secretary Robert Gates to remove Michael Wynne and Gen. Michael Moseley from their leadership posts last week was a clear message with more behind it than just USAF’s reported gaffes in nuclear weapons stewardship, say Pentagon...

Personnel Redemption

Defense Secretary Robert Gates said yesterday he intends “immediately to stop further reductions in Air Force personnel.” He made the statement while speaking to hundreds of assembled airmen at Langley AFB, Va., the first of three planned stops this week...

Answering the Call

Air Force Reserve Command, starting this year, is creating 446 new authorizations for RED HORSE squadrons to address a lingering shortage for rapid-response civil engineer skills. “The combatant commanders requested more RED HORSE capability,” said Lt. Col. Joe Ballard, chief...

Halfway Point For C-130AMP Aircraft

The first test aircraft in the Air Force’s C-130 avionics modernization program has completed its 100th flight, reaching the halfway point in its flight program ahead of schedule, lead contractor Boeing announced June 9. This aircraft, a C-130H2 model, has...

Kinetically Speaking

Afghanistan remained a busy place for Air Force strike aircraft June 6-7, according to Air Forces Central. Near Bagram on June 6, for example, A-10s took out enemy combatants with 500-pound laser-guided bombs, the command said in a release. And...

Young Details JSF Costs

Pentagon acquisition boss John Young said June 6 it takes thoughtful analysis to understand the reasons for the cost growth in the F-35 program over the past five years. “You cannot simply look at this [program] and determine it’s out...

Good Call

With the first flight of the F-35B short takeoff/vertical landing test aircraft steadily approaching, the decision, in retrospect, to fly the F-35A conventional flying variant first was a good one, even though it was criticized at the time, said John...

Lakenheath Gate Dedicated to Fallen Airman

The 48th Security Forces Squadron at RAF Lakenheath, Britain, on June 1 dedicated one of the base’s gates to SrA. Jason D. Nathan, a unit member killed one year ago in Iraq. “Airman Nathan represents the absolute best of what...

Bridge Money

The Air Force awarded teams led by Boeing and Lockheed Martin contract modifications up to $75 million to conduct additional risk-reduction work on their respective transformational communications satellite concepts, the Department of Defense announced June 6. Further, the new awards...

Texan Makes Hard Landing

A T-6A Texan II trainer aircraft landed short of the runway June 4 at Vance AFB, Okla., and was damaged. Vance officials said in a release that the one instructor pilot and one student on board exited from the aircraft...

Sorties in SWA

Air Sorties in War on Terrorism, Southwest AsiaJune 6-7, 2008 Sortie Type OIF OEF OIF/OEF Total YTD ISR 42 23 65 4,715 CAS/Armed Recon 112 98 210 14,128 Airlift 232 232 20,053 Air refueling 108 108 6,531 Total 615 45,427...