President Obama tapped Lt. Gen. Mike Holmes for assignment as the Air Force’s next long-range planner, leading the Air Staff’s A8 office, according to the Defense Department. The Pentagon announced Holmes’ nomination to be deputy chief of staff for strategic plans and programs on May 9. Holmes has been serving since August 2013 as Air Education and Training Command’s vice commander at JBSA-Randolph, Texas. If the Senate approves this nomination, Holmes would replace Lt. Gen. Michael Moeller, who has led the A8 office since October 2012.
The total number of reported sexual assaults in the Department of the Air Force ticked up about two percent in 2024 while still trailing the total from 2022, as Pentagon officials say a hiring freeze on federal government civilian employees limits their ability to fill critical sexual assault prevention and…