President Obama nominated Maj. Gen. Joseph Lengyel for promotion to the rank of lieutenant general for his assignment as vice chief of the National Guard Bureau, announced the Pentagon June 18. Lengyel has served since June 2011 as the senior US defense official in Cairo. A provision in the Fiscal 2012 defense authorization act established the vice chief post as a three-star position. Also on June 18, the Pentagon announced that Chief of Staff Gen. Norton Schwartz assigned Maj. Gen. Margaret Woodward to be Air Force chief of safety, replacing Maj. Gen. Gregory Feest, who’s held that position since August 2010. Woodward has been special assistant to the deputy chief of staff for operations, plans, and requirements since May.
A-10 Thunderbolt II attack planes in the Middle East are flying with fresh modifications as the Air Force looks to make the plane more versatile amid America’s ongoing blockade of Iranian ports and a tenuous ceasefire in the U.S. air war against Iran.