On Friday, Gen. Raymond Johns replaced Gen. Arthur Lichte as the commander of Air Mobility Command. The White House nominated Johns, a 1977 Air Force Academy graduate, on July 8 and the Senate confirmed him for four stars and his new position on July 31. He previously served as deputy chief of staff for strategic plans and programs on the Air Staff. Lichte, who has led AMC for the past two years, will formally retire in January 2010.
A U.S. Air Force F-22 shot down a Chinese surveillance balloon off the coast of South Carolina on Feb. 4, a week after it first entered U.S. airspace near Alaska. Officials said they took measures to prevent the balloon from gathering sensitive military information and are actively working to recover…