MSgt. Clifford C. Hughes in May surpassed 400 combat missions as a flight engineer. He currently serves with the 908th Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron, a KC-10 tanker unit operating from an air base in Southwest Asia as part of the 380th Air Expeditionary Wing. He reached the mission milestone May 21 during an air refueling sortie supporting operations in Afghanistan. “I have a lot to be thankful for and to be proud of and also to try to remember to receive each day as a gift,” said Hughes, whose hometown is Goshen, Ohio. Prior to flying in KC-10s, Hughes was a MH-53 Pave Low helicopter flight engineer. He is deployed from the 2nd Air Refueling Squadron at JB McGuire, N.J. This is his fifth deployment with a KC-10 unit and 11th overseas tour overall. (380th AEW report by MSgt. Scott T. Sturkol)
Roughly two of every five fighters in the Air Force fleet could be F-35As by 2035, according to a new fighter force structure report the service submitted to Congress on Oct. 16. Lt. Gen. David Tabor, deputy chief of staff for plans and programs, revealed the new estimate during an…