The Air Force is reaching out to the American public through a new online initiative for “creative and inventive” input on three unclassified projects, according to a service release. The goal of this project, known as the Air Force Collaboratory, is “to inspire [science, technology, engineering, and mathematics]-inclined students and educators to engage, collaborate, and solve real-world challenges faced by our airmen today,” said Col. Marcus Johnson, chief of the service’s strategic marketing division. The three projects are: “Search and Rescue 2.0,” which runs from Aug. 1 to Sept. 30, aiming to use rapid prototyping to develop new technologies for search and rescue operations in collapsed structures; “Mind of a Quadrotor,” from Sept. 1 to Oct. 31, seeks to devise ways for quadrotor aircraft to navigate with little human interaction; and “Launch a GPS IIF,” from Oct. 1 to Nov. 30, intends to determine the best location to launch this satellite type. “There are no bad ideas, so we ask those involved to voice them. Your ideas can help save lives,” said Johnson in the July 31 release.
Pentagon Releases Cost of Living, BAH Rates for 2026
Dec. 30, 2025
The Pentagon will pay cost of living allowances to 127,000 service members in the continental U.S. in 2026, an increase of 66,000 members in 2025. Airmen and Guardians across the U.S. will also receive an average increase of 4.2 percent for their Basic Housing Allowance, compared to the 5.4 percent…
