Five 
years after standing up, Air Force Reserve Command’s 477th Fighter Group at JB Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, is now fully capable of executing its combat mission, announced group officials. “Fully operation[ally] capable means that we are ready and able to execute our wartime tasking,” said Col. Bryan Radliff, 477th FG commander, who announced the milestone to the group’s airmen on Sept. 9. The group cooperates with Elmendorf’s Active Duty 3rd Wing to operate and maintain the base’s two squadrons of combat-coded F-22s. The 477th FG was activated at Elmendorf in October 2007, becoming the Air Force’s first Reserve F-22 unit and the only AFRC unit in Alaska. In September of the following year, the group, along with the 3rd Wing, attained the capability to assume initial F-22 operations. The 477th FG traces its heritage back to the Tuskegee Airmen’s 477th Bombardment Group of World War II. (Elmendorf report by Capt. Ashley Conner)
Shield AI has entered the increasingly crowded field of Collaborative Combat Aircraft, this week announcing its “X-BAT” vehicle that stands out from others by having both vertical takeoff and landing capability and supersonic speed.
