The Air Force late Tuesday issued its proposed force structure, realignment, and management actions in support of President Obama’s Fiscal 2011 budget submission. The announcement outlines personnel changes and reassignment of aircraft next fiscal year. The changes involve more than 13,000 active duty, reserve, and civilian positions—some 2,450 active duty, 1,300 Air Force Reserve, 220 Air National Guard, and 9,200 civilian slots. They include contractor-to-civilian conversions (34 percent), joint basing actions (16 percent), Air Force Reserve end strength increase (12 percent), and the boost in intelligence-surveillance-reconnaissance manpower (11 percent). “The Air Force continues to support new and emerging missions while making every effort to remedy the stress experienced by critically manned career fields,” said Gen. Norton Schwartz, Chief of Staff. Daily Report will have more coverage on equipment changes. (SAF/PA release) (Fiscal 2011 force structure announcement and briefing charts, caution large file)
The launch last month of Orbital Watch, the new Space Force program to share declassified U.S. government threat intelligence with private sector satellite operators and other commercial space companies, comes amid increasing concern about Chinese and Russian development of anti-satellite weapons.