Air Force Global Strike Command’s second decade in business will be a busy one. Created in 2009 as Strategic Air Command’s post-Cold War replacement, Global Strike oversees the bulk of the Pentagon’s nuclear weapons and provides bomber aircraft for combat operations and deterrence flights around the world. More than 70 years since a nuclear weapon was last used, and three decades after the Cold War ended, Global Strike is making changes to take on a new era of deterrence—one that spans not just nuclear assets but faster weapons and growing space, cyber, and electromagnetic spectrum concerns as well. In a recent interview with Air Force Magazine, Global Strike Commander Gen. Timothy Ray discussed what the command is trying out as it heads into the 2020s.
The Air Force is reviewing how Travis AFB, Calif., handled a recent power outage to determine how it can better prepare a base that is cut off from its electrical source, the service’s head of installations said. Travis AFB, Calif., suffered a power outage on Nov. 26, which limited some operations and required restricted manning on base until Pacific Gas and Electric was able to get power back the next day. This sudden, unexpected loss of power at a major USAF installation is a learning experience for the service, which will help outline steps it needs to take to be better prepared for similar events in the future, said John Henderson, the service’s assistant secretary for installations.
Michigan’s lawmakers are calling on the Air Force to reassess its F-35 Air National Guard basing plans, and move the jet to Selfridge ANGB in the state instead of Truax Field ANGB in Wisconsin. The Air Force in 2017 selected Truax Field as the preferred location for an Air National Guard F-35A unit, along with Dannelly Field in Alabama. Lawmakers tout the base’s modern facilities, low cost of conversion, and a nearby training range as benefits to moving the F-35s to Selfridge.
The Pentagon on Nov. 26 awarded Lockheed Martin a $327.95 million contract for “long lead” material, parts, and components for Air Force F-35s in advance of the anticipated Lot 15 award. The advance acquisition contract covers components for some 48 F-35As for the Air Force, with work expected to be completed in June 2023, according to the Defense Department.
