The 2nd Bomb Wing and Air Force Reserve Command’s 307th BW at Barksdale AFB, La., demonstrated “outstanding” performance during their recent nuclear operational readiness inspection, announced Barksdale officials. “You guys hit it out of the park,” said Col. Andrew Gebara, 2nd BW commander, in the base’s Nov. 7 release. The units’ “outstanding” score is the highest of five possible results in a NORI (i.e., outstanding, excellent, satisfactory, marginal, or unsatisfactory), 2nd BW spokesman Capt. Phil Ventura told the Daily Report on Nov. 8. These inspections are designed to evaluate a unit’s ability to execute its nuclear mission safely, securely, and effectively. “To the best of our understanding, it is the first time in Air Force Global Strike [Command] history that this score has been achieved on a nuclear inspection,” said Ventura. The AFGSC-led inspection team conducted the inspection from Oct. 28 to Nov. 5, states the release. “This capstone event marks the completion of our initial efforts to build a nuclear deterrence capability within [Air Force] Reserve Command,” said Col. Jonathan Ellis, 307th BW commander. (Barksdale report by TSgt. Ted Daigle and SSgt. Katherine Holt)
President Donald Trump projected confidence Nov. 19 that a proposed sale of F-35s to Saudi Arabia will sail through the Foreign Military Sales process, an early test of the Pentagon’s acquisition reforms. The deal is also likely to face scrutiny from ally Israel over how it could affect the balance…




