Gen. Edward Rice, head of Air Education and Training Command, selected CMSgt. Gerardo Tapia to be the command’s next senior enlisted leader, replacing CMSgt. James Cody. Tapia, currently command chief for 12th Air Force at Davis-Monthan AFB, Ariz., is slated to begin his tenure as AETC’s command chief at the end of the month, according to the command’s Dec. 21 release. Cody will become the Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force on Feb. 1. He has been AETC’s senior enlisted airman since September 2010. Tapia has nearly 28 years of Air Force service. He is a master personnelist and a native of El Paso, Tex.
The Pentagon announced new long-term agreements with four defense companies May 13 to develop and produce large numbers of low-cost cruise missiles. And while the effort will focus mostly on the Army to start, it pairs with Air Force efforts to find more affordable munitions.