Congress wants to pump the brakes on U.S. Special Operations Command’s effort to buy a new plane for armed overwatch in remote areas, after many lawmakers recently supported a similar Air Force program. Lawmakers call on Pentagon leadership to describe why SOCOM would need such ...
A pararescueman died during an October 2019 mountain rescue and climbing training exercise in Idaho after an anchor system failed, pulling him off the top of a cliff. Tech. Sgt. Peter Kraines, 33, a Special Tactics PJ with the 24th Special Operations Wing at Pope ...
Fighter jets won support among senators in new defense policy legislation that also raised questions about some of the Air Force’s top priorities. The Senate Armed Services Committee approved a $740.5 billion version of the fiscal 2021 defense policy bill 25-2 on June 10. Its ...
Don’t expect much investment in new fleets of special-operations aircraft as the Pentagon braces for a budget crunch, the head of Air Force Special Operations Command said May 13. “We acknowledge that we are at a strategic inflection point,” Lt. Gen. Jim Slife said during ...
Air Force Special Operations Command is ordering a third A-29 Super Tucano to train foreign troops, aircraft manufacturer Sierra Nevada Corp. said May 11. The A-29 is one of two light attack platforms the Air Force bought for limited use after declining to turn the ...
The Air Force has consolidated three special warfare officer jobs into one specialty code in an effort to streamline resourcing, talent management, and deployments, the service announced April 30. Special tactics, tactical air control party officers, and combat rescue officers will now be assigned the ...
The Air Force's future close air support portfolio will include seven squadrons of A-10s into the 2040s, along with light attack aircraft in partnership with some countries, but these efforts will be distinct from Special Operations Command's pursuit of an Armed Overwatch aircraft, USAF top ...
The Air Force’s depot maintenance activities continue unabated during the COVID-19 crisis, but Air Force Materiel Command is staying alert for supply chain issues that could affect throughput. “To date, no mission requirements have been impacted, and aircraft are still being inducted into the depots,” ...
A special tactics combat controller from the 24th Special Operations Wing at Hurlburt Field, Fla., died March 19 during a training swim in Panama City. The Airman has been identified as A1C Keigan Baker, 24, of Longview, Washington. Baker enlisted in the Air Force in ...
The Air Force is moving ahead with contracts for both finalists involved in its exploration of light-attack aircraft, issuing awards to both Textron’s AT-6 and Sierra Nevada Corp.’s A-29 over the past few weeks. Formal funding is the latest step in the Air Force’s light-attack ...
Long before Air Force Special Operations Command combat controller John Chapman exhibited the heroism that cost him his life, but earned him a posthumous Medal of Honor, he spent time at the Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland Training Annex in Texas, learning how to become a ...
An AC-130U Spooky crew provided more than nine hours of air support to special operations forces, enabling the rescue of 15 patients during a mass casualty evacuation in an April 2019 mission in Afghanistan. In a March 2 ceremony at Hurlburt Field, Fla., the aircrew ...