Orlando, February 18, 2010—USAF Gen. Gene Renuart, head of NORAD and US Northern Command and who is retiring after 38 years of service, told attendees at AFA’s Air Warfare Symposium that both his organizations are pushing the ball forward on information sharing and other cooperative efforts to further bolster homeland defense. Renuart acknowledged that the Christmas airliner bombing attempt and last year’s shooting spree at Ft. Hood involved failures in information sharing and noted that even after the attempted airliner bombing “complacency is alive out there.” However, over the last nine months, he said US officials had disrupted 10 different terrorist plots, six of which had a “DOD nexus”—seeking to target military installations or personnel.
The Air Force is spending heavily on F-22 improvements through the end of the decade, suggesting it may not retire the jet in 2030 as it previously planned. New sensors, fuel tanks, communications, and electronic warfare systems are among the upgrades that comprise the package.