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U.S. Air Force News

  • Social Security launches expedited veteran disability process

    Social Security claims from veterans with a Veterans Affairs Department disability compensation rating of 100 percent permanent and total have a new process that will treat their applications as high priority and issue expedited decisions.

  • SecAF addresses budget challenges in Congress

    Newly-appointed Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James wanted to see the Air Force in action, so she spent her first 11 weeks on the job visiting 18 bases in 13 states, she told members of the House Armed Services Committee March

  • Military children view Muppets movie at White House

    First Lady Michelle Obama hosted military children and their families at the White House yesterday for a special screening of the Disney motion picture “Muppets Most Wanted,” with an opening address by the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Army Gen. Martin E. Dempsey.

  • AF requests BRAC from House Appropriations Committee

    The Air Force presented to the House Appropriations Committee panel its fiscal 2015 budget request March 12, showing it will take more risk with military construction and military housing and is requesting another round of base realignments and closures.

  • Air Force presents FY 15 budget request

    The Air Force presented its fiscal year 2015 President’s Budget request today, following similar briefings by the Department of Defense and its sister services.

  • Airmen honor former senior enlisted leaders

    Airmen gathered to honor the former chief master sergeants of the Air Force with a positional colors ceremony at the Air Force Senior NCO Academy at Maxwell Air Force Base, Ala.

  • Air Force focuses on sustainability for Earth Day 2014 observance

    Each year Air Force installations around the world observe Earth Day on April 22 by taking actions to support the Air Force's Earth Day theme of "Conserve Today - Secure Tomorrow."This year, Air Force activities will focus on sustainability, referring to the capacity to continue the mission without

  • SecAF discusses Air Force future, budget during defense summit

    Defense industry leaders and analysts received an insight into the proposed Air Force transformation and a preview of the Fiscal Year 2015 Air Force budget during the Bloomberg Government Defense Transformation Spending and Strategy Summit Feb. 26.

  • Hagel talks with troops about 2015 defense budget request

    In spotless aircraft hangars at two different military bases in southeastern Virginia yesterday, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel stood before several hundred Airmen and Soldiers, highlighting priorities in the Defense Department’s fiscal 2015 budget request and taking questions.

  • Military saves week encourages fiscal fitness

    Now in its eighth year of partnership with America Saves Week, the Defense Department’s Military Saves Week begins today to help service members achieve financial security, flexibility and confidence, a Pentagon official said in a telephone news conference here Feb. 24.

  • SecAF outlines top priorities during ‘State of AF’ address

    After her second month in office, Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee James laid out her top three priorities as part of a “state of the Air Force” address, during the final day of the 30th annual Air Force Association Warfare Symposium and Technology Exposition Feb. 21.

  • SSgt promotion test rescheduled for April 1-May 16

    To ensure senior airmen selected for promotion to staff sergeant do not meet the enlisted retention board, the Air Force will move the testing window up from May 1-June 15 to April 1-May 16, Air Force Personnel Center officials said today.

  • Knowledge is power: Cadet, Academy works to end human trafficking

    In 2005, the Defense Department implemented a national initiative against human trafficking, requiring annual Combating Trafficking in Persons awareness training for all military members on how to combat labor trafficking, sex trafficking and child soldiering.

  • CSAF thanks Edwards AFB Airmen, talks keys to AF success

    Almost a thousand Airmen, government civilians and contractors filled the base theater to hear Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark A. Welsh III talk to Edwards Air Force Bases Airmen about current issues and future challenges involving the service.

  • Maintainers ready gunships for retirement

    After more than 40 years of providing close air support, air interdiction and force protection for special operations forces, the preparation for the eventual retirement and phase out of the AC-130H Spectre, recognized as "world's deadliest conventional weapon" by the Military Channel and Fox News,

  • Welsh thanks Eglin AFB Airmen, families

    Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark A. Welsh III visited Team Eglin Jan. 26-28 to thank Airmen and their families here for their service and sacrifice, and to discuss current challenges and opportunities facing the service.

  • Reserve offers opportunities to continue AF career

    Airmen who don't want to hang up their uniforms for good during the current period of force management, may find rewarding career opportunities in the Air Force Reserve, recruiting officials said recently.

  • Space squadron optimizes wideband communication constellations

    Late in 2013, the 3rd Space Operations Squadron’s mission -- "Warfighters ensuring reliable wideband communications to national authorities and U.S. and Allied forces" -- was proudly displayed as the unit repositioned its eighth satellite during a nine-month effort to optimize the military wideband

  • AF convenes officer RIF board, offers voluntary separation pay

    The Air Force will convene an officer reduction in force board June 16 to evaluate eligible officers for retention, Air Force Personnel Center officials said Jan. 27. Officers who meet the RIF board and are not selected for retention must separate by Jan. 31, 2015.RIF is among several fiscal 2014

  • Force shaping board to convene in July

    The Air Force will convene a fiscal 2014 Force Shaping Board here July 14 to consider eligible officers within competitive categories for continued retention, Air Force Personnel Center officials said Jan. 27.

  • AF lays to rest an ‘American hero’

    Friends, family members, political leaders, former prisoners of war and service members paid their respects as an Air Force Ace was interred at Arlington National Cemetery Jan. 23.

  • Two deployed friends combine 78 years of AF service

    Two Airmen with the 455th Expeditionary Aircraft Maintenance Squadron at Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan, have both been turning wrenches on jet engines longer than most people in the Air Force have been alive.

  • Father and son share A-10 legacy

    Already anxious about the first day of high school football practice, a young junior donned his gear and was calmed as he looked to the sidelines to see his father there watching. For the junior, a life of uncertainty and unfamiliarity was something he was used to. The next day his father, an A-10C

  • CJCS' top enlisted advisor speaks to DOD initiatives

    On the cusp of one of Minot Air Force Base's most demanding inspections this year, Airmen here welcomed the Senior Enlisted Advisor to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Marine Corps Sgt. Maj. Bryan Battaglia.

  • CHIEFchat: CMSAF talks about force management, EPRs

    Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force James A. Cody addressed upcoming changes to enlisted performance reports and effects of force management during his 2nd worldwide CHIEFchat at Defense Media Activity here Jan. 9. CHIEFchat is a recurring initiative, designed to give Airmen around the world a

  • DOD focuses on healthy, active lifestyle for kids

    With the national rate of childhood obesity increasing, the Defense Department wants to ensure children in military families lead healthy and active lifestyles, the Defense Department's director of the office of family policy and children and youth said.

  • AF JAG Corps gains insight at SAPR Summit

    The Air Force Judge Advocate General Corps held its first Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Summit Dec. 17-18 at the Air Force Senior Noncommissioned Officer Academy here.The purpose of the summit was to bring total force legal professionals together to improve the way they handle all aspects

  • Sexual assault reports drop at service academies

    Reports of sexual assault decreased in two of the three military academies in academic year 2012-13, officials of the Defense Department's Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office said today.

  • Airman cellist bows for audience

    The deep, rich sound of the vibrating strings echoed in front of thousands of people at a change of command ceremony as one Airman put to work 22 years of practice.

  • TAP curriculum available online for separating service members

    Separating service members can participate in the transition assistance program, or TAP, online, Department of Defense officials announced. TAP, now called Transition GPS-Goals, Plans and Success, is designed to help prepare separating and retiring members for life outside of the military. It

  • AFNet PII breaches still a concern

    More than one month after Air Force Space Command's implementation of lock-out procedures for individuals found to have inappropriately transmitted Personally Identifiable Information, PII breaches still remain a significant issue.

  • CMSAF, wife visit air traffic control roots

    Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force James A. Cody and his wife, retired Chief Master Sgt. Athena Cody, returned here Jan. 3 and 4 to visit the men and women of the 157th Air Refueling Wing nearly 23 years after leaving as young staff sergeants.

  • AF to convene enhanced selective early retirement board in June

    The Air Force will convene an enhanced selective early retirement board here June 16 to consider eligible officers for early retirement, Air Force Personnel Center officials said today.ESERB, a new authority granted in the fiscal 2013 National Defense Authorization Act, applies to regular,

  • Enlisted retention board to convene in June

    An enlisted retention board will convene here in June to consider eligible senior airmen through senior master sergeants for retention, Air Force Personnel Center officials said.

  • AF selects officers for space leadership roles

    More than three dozen officers have been selected for calendar year 2014 space operations director of operations, detachment commander and director of space forces positions, Air Force Personnel Center officials announced.

  • TRICARE retiree dental program open for new enrollment

    The TRICARE Retiree Dental Program (TRDP) offers comprehensive dental coverage to all enrolled members. Available to retired service members and their family, retired National Guard and Reserve members and their family, Medal of Honor recipients, their family and survivors, TRDP is currently open

  • Eligible officers, enlisted members offered early retirement

    Staff through senior master sergeants and captains through lieutenant colonels in certain Air Force Specialty Codes may apply to retire with fewer than 20 years of active service under the Temporary Early Retirement Authority, Air Force Personnel Center officials announced.

  • DOD strives to eliminate sexual assault

    Eliminating sexual assault in the U.S. military is one of the Defense Department’s highest priorities and the department welcomes President Barack Obama’s continued leadership on this issue and shares his commitment to doing what it takes to solve this problem, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said in

  • CSAF hosts summit to address sexual assault

    Chief of Staff of the Air Force Gen. Mark A. Welsh III hosted a Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Summit Dec.11 and 12 as part of the Air Force's ongoing effort to provide education and analysis on the issue and to discuss the complex leadership concerns sexual assault presents.

  • DOS rollback included in FY14 force management

    In addition to force management programs announced in July, the Air Force will implement the Enlisted Date of Separation Rollback Program for fiscal 2014, Air Force Personnel Center officials said Dec. 17.

  • VA official outlines progress in reducing claims backlog

    A senior Veterans Affairs Department official Dec. 11, outlined progress made by the Veterans Benefits Administration in reducing the backlog of veterans' disability compensation and pension claims by 36 percent since March, attributing the success to the combined impact of transformation

  • AF officials announce FY14 civilian workforce shaping

    The Air Force will reduce the size of its civilian workforce by about 900 positions in addition to maintaining approximately 7,000 vacancies across the force to meet the demands of a constrained fiscal 2014 budget, officials announced.

  • AF announces additional force management programs to reduce force size

    Air Force leaders announced force management programs today designed to reduce the force by thousands of Airmen over the next five years as a result of sequestration.Fiscal 2014 force management initiatives are in addition to the announcement made in July, stating the Air Force will implement

  • AF to convene CMSgt retention board in June

    The Air Force will convene a chief master sergeant retention board in June to select chief master sergeants for retirement no later than Nov. 1, 2014, officials announced today.

  • Small shop spreads cool savings

    During the summer months at the 379th Air Expeditionary Wing a properly working air conditioner is a priority for Airmen and for aircraft assigned here supporting decisive combat air power and 30 percent of U.S. Air Forces Central Command's daily air tasking order sorties.

  • Prepare now for tax season, DOD official advises

    With a month left before the start of tax season, service members should begin gathering documentation to file their 2013 taxes, said the director of the Pentagon's office of family policy and children and youth said. In a recent interview with American Forces Press Service and the Pentagon Channel,

  • AF senior leaders tour Dakota bases, meet personnel

    Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark A. Welsh III arrived here today for a three-day trip through the Dakotas.Welsh, his wife Betty, and Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force James A. Cody will visit the base and then move to Ellsworth Air Force Base, S.D., to meet with Airmen and their families.

  • 2 AF teams earn DOD's top acquisition award

    Deputy Defense Secretary Ash Carter presented four acquisition teams with the David Packard Excellence in Acquisition Award, the highest Defense Department-bestowed honor for acquisitions, Nov. 25.

  • Wounded warriors gain confidence during Pentagon volleyball contest

    Gung-ho spirits were the norm as wounded-warrior athletes from the four services, U.S. Special Operations Command and the Department of Veterans Affairs clashed at the 3rd Annual Joint Services Sitting Volleyball Tournament, in recognition of Warrior Care Month.

  • Commissary CEO shares sequestration consequences

    Offering a glimpse at what commissary and military exchange services could become in light of smaller and unpredictable budgets, the Defense Commissary Agency director and CEO described to Congress yesterday the consequences sequestration and the government shutdown have already imposed. Customers

  • Air Force official recommends energy partnerships

    Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Energy, Dr. Kevin T. Geiss, emphasized service collaboration in cost-savings measures during a panel discussion at the Joint Services Energy Panel at the George Mason University Arlington Campus here Nov. 20. Geiss said the Air Force's total fleet

  • Retired ACC ops chief lauded by acting SecAF

    A retired Air Force officer who brought the F-22 Raptor fleet back to full operational status following an indefinite grounding, received the 2012 Eugene M. Zuckert Management Award, at the Pentagon, Nov. 18.

  • CMSAF launches worldwide CHIEFchat, answers questions from the force

    Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force James A. Cody shared the latest information on past, present and future of the Air Force with Airmen, Air Force civilians and their families Nov. 12, during a worldwide CHIEFchat session at the headquarters of the Defense Media Activity here.

  • CSAF discusses opening communications with China

    Opening up lines of communication with China is good for the United States, the region and the world, the Air Force chief of staff said here Nov. 13. Gen. Mark A. Welsh III spoke about his recent trip to China with the Defense Writers Group this morning.

  • Acting SecAF honors longest-serving AF civilian

    Acting Secretary of the Air Force Eric Fanning visited Luke Air Force Base on Nov. 5 to speak to Luke Airmen and preside over the retirement ceremony of a civil servant in the 56th Comptroller Squadron, Dorothy Rowe, who retired after serving 70 years - the longest tenure of any civilian in the Air

  • DOD, VA collaborate to serve nation’s veterans

    The departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs reaffirmed their commitment to serve and care for the nation’s military veterans in a joint message issued by Acting Undersecretary of Defense Jessica L. Wright and Undersecretary of Veterans Affairs for Benefits Allison A. Hickey.

  • DOD must control rising personnel costs, Hagel tells NCOs

    The Defense Department has to get personnel costs under control, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel told “NPR Morning Edition” host Steve Inskeep in an interview broadcast today.The interview came at the conclusion of Hagel’s monthly lunch with junior NCO’s in his Pentagon office Nov. 4. The secretary

  • SERB-eligible officers have until Nov. 15 to apply for retirement

    Lieutenant colonels and colonels who are eligible to meet the Selective Early Retirement Board slated for Dec. 9 still have time to volunteer for retirement before the Nov. 15 window closes, Air Force Personnel Center officials said. SERB is one of several force management programs to be implemented

  • Strong families key to military’s strength, top NCO says

    Healthy military families are essential to guaranteeing the health of the overall force, the country’s senior noncommissioned officer said here today.Marine Corps Sgt. Maj. Bryan B. Battaglia, the senior enlisted advisor to the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and his wife, Lisa, addressed

  • Civilian Airman wins key energy award

    The Air Force's Energy Action Month is drawing to a close, but Laughlin continues to lead the way in energy efficiency and water conservation with the recent announcement that a Laughlin civilian won the 2013 Department of Energy Individual Federal Energy and Water Management Award.

  • Celebrated pilot and Vietnam POW dies at 88

    Retired Brig. Gen. Robinson “Robbie” Risner, a celebrated Korean War jet fighter ace and Vietnam prisoner of war, died Oct. 22 at Bridgewater Retirement Community, Bridgewater, Va. He was 88 years old.

  • Military parenting website assists communication

    Service members who deploy or are otherwise separated from their families due to mission needs now have an online resource allowing them to hone their parenting skills as they reconnect with their children.

  • Daughter helps Dad wrap up 28-year career

    Approximately 100,000 military service members are currently deployed and fighting the war against terrorism. Most of whom, will not see their families for at least six months. However, there is the rare occasion where family members have the opportunity to serve side by side. Senior Master Sgt.