The Senate Armed Services Committee on Wednesday approved the nomination of Heather Wilson to be the next Secretary of the Air Force with a vote of 22 to 5. The nomination now moves to the full Senate for a vote. Wilson is a former Republican congresswoman from New Mexico, president of the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology, and a 1982 Air Force Academy graduate. During her confirmation hearing she urged Congress to repeal sequestration budget caps, and vowed to work with industry to get the best deal on a variety of USAF acquisition programs.
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.