Gen. Duncan McNabb assumed command of US Transportation Command during a ceremony Sept. 5 at Scott AFB, Ill. Defense Secretary Robert Gates presided over the ceremony, which Adm. Michael Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, also attended. “There is little doubt that this command requires a special kind of leader—one who can maintain a focus on details within the context of massive and myriad operations,” Gates said. “Gen. McNabb is the right person for this job.” McNabb, who had been serving as Air Force vice chief of staff since last September, returns to Scott after having led Air Mobility Command there from October 2005 to September 2007. McNabb is the ninth TRANSCOM commander. He succeeds Gen. Norton Schwartz, who became Chief of Staff Aug. 12, following the service’s recent leadership shakeup. (Scott report)
The Pentagon’s new counter-drone task force will play a direct role in arming Airmen with new weapons to defend Air Force agile combat employment, or ACE, air bases in austere locations against enemy drone attacks, the director of Joint Interagency Task Force 401 said Oct. 14.