Lt. Gen. Steven Kwast assumed command of Air University at Maxwell AFB, Ala., during a ceremony. He replaced Lt. Gen. David Fadok, who led the university since August 2011. Gen. Robin Rand, head of Air Education and Training Command, presided over the Nov. 10 change of command. He said Kwast “has the strategic and academic credentials” to lead AU, according to a Maxwell release. “I am excited about the vision and leadership [he will] provide,” said Rand. Kwast is now responsible for graduating more than 50,000 resident and 120,000 non-resident officer, enlisted, and civilian students each year, states the release. He most recently served as AU’s vice commander and head of Maxwell’s Curtis E. LeMay Center. Fadok is retiring from the Air Force, effective Jan. 1, 2015, after some 32 years in uniform. Rand characterized him as a “brilliant senior leader,” who has increased AU in its standing as an academic institution.
The Pentagon is significantly bolstering airpower near Venezuela, dispatching the USS Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group to Latin America, it said in an Oct. 24 statement. The announcement came just hours after U.S. Air Force B-1 bombers and other U.S. assets flew near the Venezuelan coast on Oct. 23.
