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U.S. Air Force News

  • Around the Air Force: Jan. 6

    On this look around the Air Force, President Obama says farewell to service members and new synthetic tie downs and winch cables on the C-17 Globemaster III are saving the Air Force money. Hosted by Airman 1st Class Jasmine Vanderheyden.

  • Around the Air Force: Dec. 2

    On this look around the Air Force the first Japanese F-35 arrives at Luke Air Force Base, Arizona; Edwards AFB in California is testing ways to save fueling cost for the C-17 Globemaster III; and the Air Force band performs at the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C.

  • Final phase of C-17 drag reduction testing underway

    When it comes to aviation fuel, the C-17 Globemaster III utilization rate makes it stand out as the largest consumer in the Air Force. This is why a team at the 418th Flight Test Squadron has been working for the past year on the Air Force Research Laboratory’s C-17 Drag Reduction Program.

  • C-17 Weapons Instructor Course relocates to JB Lewis-McChord

    Air Mobility Command will save $12 million annually by moving a weapons squadron and weapons instructor course from Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, New Jersey to Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington beginning the summer of 2017, officials announced Nov. 18.

  • Airman follows dad’s lead, applies lesson to life, career

    Not every son gets a chance to live out his father’s legacy. For Senior Airman Christopher Martinez, an 8th Expeditionary Air Mobility Squadron crew chief, each day served in the Air Force is an opportunity to honor his father’s, Tech. Sgt. Gilbert Martinez, memory.

  • Joint exercise prepares Airmen, Soldiers for contingency ops

    Green Flag Little Rock 16-09 kicked off Aug. 18 with about 750 Army paratroopers jumping from several C-130J Super Hercules and C-17 Globemaster III aircraft in the dead of night to seize and secure an assault zone. Among the largest rotational air mobility training events in the world, the exercise

  • Air Force, Army planners find ways to see greater jump in airdrops

    An arriving C-130 Hercules taxies to a large hangar where about 60 Army paratroopers wait to board. Lugging about 100 pounds of gear, the Soldiers quickly line up and load into the aircraft as its four idling engines blow hot gusts over the tarmac. Minutes later, the plane is flying at 150 mph and

  • Newly activated unit guides transient aircraft on joint missions

    Any aircraft that flies into Pope Army Airfield, Col. Kelly Holbert will know about it. But Holbert’s unit, the 43rd Air Mobility Operations Group, has no aircraft of its own. As the only en route operations group in the continental U.S., the unit manages transient aircraft and the joint missions

  • Quality assurance Airmen ensure cargo aircraft are mission ready

    Aircraft maintainers hold themselves to a high standard when performing their daily duties because they know one mistake could lead to devastating consequences. Kadena Air Base, Japan, is home to six different airframes and a partner unit that hosts two additional airframes for cargo functions, the

  • Saber Strike turns to medevac mission for C-17 aircrew

    After a C-17 Globemaster III aircrew from the 21st Airlift Squadron at Travis Air Force Base, California, took off June 10 for exercise Saber Strike 16, they ended up on a real-world emergency medical mission to help a fellow Airman.

  • Around the Air Force: July 8

    In this look around the Air Force the first enlisted RQ-4 Global Hawk pilots have been selected for training, an MQ-9 Reaper crashed in northern Syria, and a C-17 Globemaster III was awarded the best static display at an air show in England.

  • Teamwork, airlift keys to success of exercise in Gabon

    Airmen from the 62nd Airlift Wing at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington, participated in Central Accord 2016, a joint military exercise with nearly 1,000 participants from 14 countries, which took place on the western coast of Africa June 10-24.

  • Brothers connect at 22,000 feet

    A couple months ago, two KC-135 Stratotankers took flight from Fairchild Air Force Base, Washington, to participate in an ordinary air refueling training exercise, but for the Marchesseault brothers, the day was anything but ordinary.

  • Dover entomologists help curb spread of Zika

    After Italy issued aircraft guidelines to combat the Zika epidemic, the 436th Civil Engineer Squadron Pest Management section is ensuring Air Force aircraft are able to fly in country.

  • 5 hours of work for 15 seconds of action

    A C-17 Globemaster III flies low, with its cargo door open. In 30 seconds it will drop 2 tons of food and water to a disaster-stricken country; the pallets will land safely, all due to the expertise of aerial delivery specialist riggers.

  • Humanitarian aid delivered to Haiti through Denton Program

    Members from the 701st Airlift Squadron delivered humanitarian aid to Port-au-Prince on April 21 as part of ongoing Denton Program efforts. Two C-17 Globemaster IIIs were filled with 32 combined pallets as they transported more than 170,000 pounds of humanitarian aid to Haiti.

  • Flares keep birds in the sky

    They are hot, bright and a visual spectacle. But they are not your run-of-the-mill fireworks being shot off in celebration. Flares used by pilots are life-saving emergency countermeasures that keep Dover Air Force Base, Delaware, aircraft in the skies delivering airlift cargo to the warfighter.

  • Families ordered to leave Turkey arriving in US

    Military dependents and pets began arriving at Baltimore Washington International Airport, Maryland, March 31 following an ordered departure of Defense Department dependents due to security concerns in some areas of Turkey. Dependents arriving at BWI were flown on Air Mobility Command’s C-17

  • Incirlik ensures safe departure of families from Turkey

    While Incirlik Air Base remains a hub of activity in support of Operation Inherent Resolve, an ordered departure was approved March 29 for families of military members and Defense Department civilians stationed in Adana, Izmir and Mugla, Turkey, to include those on base.

  • C-17 drag reduction testing aims at saving fuel

    From testing synthetic biofuels to "vortex surfing," Edwards Air Force Base, California, is on the forefront of finding new ways to cut fuel costs for the Air Force. The latest venture is currently underway at the 418th Flight Test Squadron where a test team of Air Force and Boeing personnel

  • JB Charleston Airmen support presidential mission to Cuba

    As President Barack Obama landed in Havana, Cuba, it marked the first time a sitting U.S. president visited the communist nation in over 88 years, and Airmen from Joint Base Charleston, South Carolina, played a pivotal role in the historic mission.

  • C-17 Airmen expand global reach

    Forging combat mobility forces is something that the aircrew instructors of the C-17 Globemaster III take extremely serious, but that mission is not just limited to skies over the U.S. A team of Airmen from Altus Air Force Base, Oklahoma, and Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington, recently spent two

  • Keeping the C-17 in the fight

    The 8th Expeditionary Air Mobility Squadron maintenance team at Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar, helps keep the base’s C-17 Globemaster III fleet mission ready by performing regular maintenance on each aircraft. The unit provides the only tier two C-17 maintenance capability in the U.S. Central Command

  • Astronaut rescue exercise proves Airmen ready to support space mission

    It's not common an astronaut must be rescued out of rough open waters after descending home to Earth in a crewed capsule; but when those space race-era days of human space flight return, a small Air Force detachment knows they will be ready. The 45th Operations Group’s Detachment 3 joined NASA's

  • McChord performs during Rainier War exercise

    In today's military, aircrews have to be trained and ready to handle any type of combat scenario, and recently, members of Joint Base Lewis-McChord and other bases participated in exercise Rainier War to help hone their skills.

  • AMC C-17 facilitates airdrop for Missile Defense Agency test

    Over the summer, the Air Force Test Center sent a C-17 Globemaster III with air and maintenance crews from Edwards Air Force Base to Hawaii, but it was no vacation. The crews worked 24-hour shifts for several months to support a Missile Defense Agency test of the Ballistic Missile Defense System

  • PACAF Airmen show C-17 medical capability to Indian defense minister

    Pacific Air Forces Airmen showcased aeromedical evacuation capabilities of the C-17 Globemaster III as they hosted Indian Defense Minister Manohar Parrikar and Arun K. Singh, the Indian ambassador to the U.S. on Dec. 7, as a part of a U.S. Pacific Command visit designed to enhance the U.S.-Indian

  • Linking continents through refueling

    Eight KC-10 Extenders, including two from the 32nd Air Refueling Squadron, refueled seven C-17 Globemaster IIIs over the Atlantic Ocean as they participated in the Trident Juncture exercise Nov. 3.Trident Juncture included 36,000 personnel from more than 30 nations and demonstrated NATO's increased

  • Complex closes out productive year with 217 aircraft serviced

    A total of 217 aircraft -- including C-5 Galaxy, C-17 Globemaster III, C-130 Hercules and F-15 Eagle models -- were serviced in fiscal year 2015, which ended Sept. 30. That number includes 15 unscheduled depot-level maintenance aircraft, with two C-5s, three C-17s and 10 C-130s.

  • Hot maintenance

    Carrying out maintenance on Dover Air Force Base’s fleet of C-5M Super Galaxies and C-17A Globemaster IIIs can be challenging at times, but extreme heat and humidity can add additional challenges during the summer months.

  • C-17 fleet celebrates 3M flying hours

    The C-17 Globemaster III has proved again that it remains the world's premier airlifter after the total C-17 fleet celebrated the historical milestone of achieving 3 million flying hours on May 5.

  • Airman aims high for the future

    Since early childhood, Air National Guard Staff Sgt. Kimberly Daugherty has admired service members, especially those who fly. The shiny wings displayed on their uniforms instilled in her a sense of wonder. When asked what she wanted to be when she grew up, she always responded with the same answer:

  • Former Soldier earns Air Force wings

    First Lt. Kevin Summerbell attended ROTC and commissioned as an officer in the Air Force to be a C-17 Globemaster III pilot, the same aircraft he was flown back on from Iraq after being wounded in combat. He is now assigned to the 15th Airlift Squadron at Joint Base Charleston, South Carolina.

  • Retrograde in full gear

    As the retrograde mission of transporting equipment and personnel out of Afghanistan continues, Dover AFB personnel are hard at work ensuring the job is done safely, on time and as efficiently as possible.

  • From helicopters to bulldozers, McChord supports Operation Deep Freeze

    Continuing the Defense Department's longstanding support of the National Science Foundation, a Joint Base Lewis-McChord crew, made up of 62nd and 446th Airlift Wing members, safely completed another run to McMurdo Station, Antarctica, Oct 8, as part of their contribution to the U.S. Antarctic

  • Simulators train aircrew at fraction of cost

    Using simulators for the majority of pilot training is a huge advantage. They operate at about 5 percent of the cost of real jets. One hour of flying in a C-17 costs approximately $23,424 -- a substantial difference compared to the simulator.

  • C-17 treads into new territory

    As important as ailerons, rudders and elevators are to the fundamental movement of any aircraft in flight, its tires are equally important while moving on the ground.

  • C-17 crew gets Army Strykers into the 'fight'

    Air Mobility Command's mission is to provide rapid, global mobility and sustainment for America's armed forces, a capability demonstrated during Steadfast Javelin II, a large-scale, joint, multinational exercise held on Ramstein Air Base, Germany, from Aug. 31 through Sept. 11.The exercise further

  • Airman saved lives 'the right way'

    Last December, Senior Airman Cody Nuñez, 21st Airlift Squadron, spent two weeks in Entebbe, Uganda providing humanitarian care to the war-torn Central African Republic.

  • U.S. provides aid to Yezidis, strikes ISIL mortar position

    The U.S. military conducted a sixth airdrop last night of food and water for thousands of Iraqi citizens threatened by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant on Mount Sinjar, Iraq, U.S. Central Command officials said. This airdrop was conducted from multiple air bases in the CENTCOM area of

  • C-17 crew supports Africa-led peacekeeping support mission

    The Defense Department sent another Air Force C-17 Globemaster III transport jet from Burundi to the Central African Republic today in support of the African Union-led International Support Mission in that beleaguered nation.

  • Journey home: Final C-17 leaves Boeing for Charleston

    As the sun rose above Long Beach, Calif., the last U.S. Air Force C-17 Globemaster III, P-223, rolled off the Boeing assembly onto the flight line where it was prepared for its inaugural flight to Joint Base Charleston, S.C.