Microburst Kills Airman in Southwest Asia

An Airman assigned to the 407th Air Expeditionary Group in Southwest Asia in support of Operation Inherent Resolve died on April 15 when the building he was working in was damaged from extreme winds. A1C Nathaniel McDavitt, 22, of Glen...

Night Vision Goggle Case Caused Fatal C-130 Crash

A misplaced night vision goggle case led to the C-130J crash that killed 14 at Jalalabad Airport, Afghanistan, in October, Air Mobility Command investigators found. After landing at Jalalabad, the crew conducted engine-running on-load/offload operations. To assist with offloading, the...

Fighting Drug Smugglers with Bombers

The Air Force is going to coordinate training flights in the Caribbean and Latin America to assist with drug enforcement efforts, sending aircraft such as B-1s and B-52s on flights that could help deter trafficking. Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee...

GAO: Make F-35 Upgrade Its Own Program

A planned F-35 upgrade should be considered a separate acquisition program to improve oversight, the Government Accountability Office said in a report released Thursday. The GAO recommended Congress direct the Pentagon to breakout the follow-on modernization, or Block 4, because...

Advanced Fighters to Deploy to Philippines

The Air Force will deploy “advanced fighter jets,” possibly F-22s, to the Philippines following the extended rotation of A-10s and other aircraft, Pentagon spokesman Navy Capt. Jeff Davis said during a Friday briefing. Defense Secretary Ash Carter announced on April...

Pentagon Sends BRAC Report to Congress

The Air Force has 32 percent excess infrastructure, the Defense Department said in a new report urging Congress to approve another round of Base Realignment and Closure. Deputy Defense Secretary Bob Work on April 12 sent a report to congressional...

Space Traffic Cops

Colorado Springs, Colo. The head of Air Force Space Command would prefer to have airmen who are doing collision avoidance and orbital analysis focus on other missions, but the military must continue to operate the network for “space control,” AFSPC...

Different Domains, Same Mission

Colorado Springs, Colo. While space and cyber are separate domains, they have very similar missions, Gen. John Hyten, commander of Air Force Space Command, told reporters on April 14. “I fundamentally believe that space and cyber should be integrated, especially...

The NATO Trip-Wire

NATO nations will work to reshape troop posture and readiness at the alliance’s Warsaw Summit this summer, Timo Koster, NATO’s director of defense policy and capabilities, said April 14 at an Atlantic Council event in Washington, D.C. Koster said the...

CyberPatriot Crowns National Champions

The Air Force Association announced the winners of the CyberPatriot VIII National Youth Cyber Defense Competition. Summit Technology Academy’s “Team Sudo” of Lee’s Summit, Mo., won the national championship in the Open Division. Centurion Battalion, a US Naval Sea Cadet...