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  • Floating checks will soon be thing of the past

    “Check floaters” beware. The Army and Air Force Exchange Service will start to electronically process checks in January. Now, instead of taking up to three days, check may process instantly or in one day. The move is so the exchange service complies with “Check 21” Legislation. “Checks will be

  • Airmen in place for Hurricane Wilma relief

    As Hurricane Wilma rips through south Florida, Airmen from 1st Air Force are already in place today to help storm victims. The rest of 1st Air Force is ready to respond, if asked to provide resources for Wilma relief efforts, said 1st AF commander Maj. Gen. M. Scott Mayes. “If we get the call, we’re

  • Introductory flight training undergoing changes

    The introductory flight training program that prepares pilot candidates for specialized undergraduate pilot training will decrease from 50 to 25 hours next fall. The transitional program will bridge the change from the current introductory program to a new program called initial flight screening.

  • Lakenheath opens air dominance center

    The Air Force’s first Joint and Combined Air Dominance Center of Excellence is now open for business here. Lt. Col. Dave Slade, the center commander, said the Air Force established the center in response to the changing security environment in European Command’s area of responsibility with the

  • New Air Force Portal tool gets warfighters parts faster

    Armed with a single user ID, password and valid stock number, Airmen can now get parts into the hands of warfighters quicker with a new Air Force Portal application. The Enterprise Solution-Supply online tool gives logisticians the ability to find parts stored in any of the more than 300 Air Force

  • Cope Thunder 06-01 challenges end

    The first winter Cope Thunder ended here Oct. 20 and aircrews found the weather was their main adversary. But the weather at this remote base -- which grounded many missions -- is exactly why exercise planners picked it to host Pacific Air Force’s premier combat airpower exercise, said Col. Bob

  • Vandenberg launches final Titan IV

    After five decades of service, the Air Force and the Lockheed Martin Corp. launched the last Titan IV B rocket from here Oct. 19. The heavy-lift workhorse thundered off the pad at 11:05 PST to deliver its final payload to space. It carried a critical national security payload for the National

  • Hurricane Hunters fly into record season

    Despite being displaced and working out of a temporary home, the men and women of the Hurricane Hunters are flying missions to track Hurricane Wilma. The Hurricane Hunters,  of Air Force Reserve Command’s 53rd Weather Reconnaissance Squadron, flew a WC-130J into Wilma measuring top sustained winds

  • Depot's around-the-clock service better for warfighters

    A new one-stop customer service center here is helping get aircraft replacement parts to “downrange” customers much faster. The Oklahoma City Air Logistics Center here established the center -- open around-the-clock -- to provide customers timely, accurate and “action-based” service. The center goes

  • Iraqi pollsters receive airlift help

    When Iraq took its next step toward democracy -- voting on a constitution -- Airmen and Marines helped ensure the process worked. That included getting 1,320 Iraqi poll workers safely to and from Baghdad International Airport to their polling stations around the country. It was a job that lasted

  • Air Force meets 2005 enlisted, OTS recruiting goal

    The Air Force exceeded its fiscal 2005 enlisted recruiting goal by sending 19,222 men and women to basic military training. And while the service had success recruiting for Officer Training School, it fell short in recruiting in some medical fields. "This was a challenging year for Air Force

  • Bagram getting new passenger terminal

    Engineers are building a new $932,000 passenger terminal that will expand operations at this base. Twenty-four Airmen from the 1st Expeditionary Red Horse Group, deployed here from Nellis Air Force Base, Nev., began laying the terminal’s foundation earlier this month. The group expects to finish the

  • Force shaping board meeting in 2006

    A force shaping board will convene in 2006 and continue to meet annually to properly shape the officer corps to meet emerging Air Force needs. Instituted by the Air Force, the board will be a regular aspect of force management and development in the future. Authorized by the Secretary of the Air

  • Airmen score triple play on one trip

    A C-130 Hercules aircrew picked up earthquake relief supplies in Bahrain and delivered them to Pakistan Oct. 15 -- but their mission did not end there. The crew then flew to Manas Air Base, Kyrgyzstan, where it picked up cargo to take to Bagram Air Base, Afghanistan, to support Operation Enduring

  • Antarctica Deep Freeze mission resumes

    One of the most difficult Air Force missions -- Operation Deep Freeze -- is about to resume. Deep Freeze is the Air Force’s resupply mission for the National Science Foundation and U.S. Antarctica operations. Aircrews from the 109th Airlift Wing, New York Air National Guard stopped at here on their

  • Edwards Talons test one-engine takeoffs

    T-38 Talons usually require both engines for takeoff. But in case one engine fails, pilots and engineers here are working to determine the safest single engine takeoff speed for the aircraft. Edwards Air Force Base test pilots last completed single engine takeoff speed, or SETOS, testing on the T-38

  • First F/A-22 deployment is for training

    The Raptors are leaving the nest for their first deployment. Nearly 170 Airmen left here Oct. 15 on a two-week deployment to Hill Air Force Base, Utah. This may sound like a run-of-the-mill temporary duty assignment. But for the Langley Airmen, it is far from a typical out-of-town operation. It is

  • Falcons wake up at the right time

    Air Force football players, like many athletes, are creatures of habit. So the prospect of playing an early-morning game against the University of Nevada Las Vegas wasn’t exactly greeted with high-fives. But judging by their 42-7 route of the Rebels Oct. 15, the Falcons may want to re-set their

  • Space Command presented first-ever missile badge

    A unique ceremony took place here in which the family of a space pioneer presented Air Force Space Command a unique object -- the Air Force’s first missile badge. The family of the late Col. William Erlenbusch presented the first missile badge -- known as the U.S. Air Force guided missile insignia

  • Airmen act quickly at accident scene

     When thrust into a surreal situation, three Airmen here stepped up and showed that people can do extraordinary things. It was around 1 a.m. Oct. 16 when Senior Airmen Brooke and Marc Llafet and Matt Ritchie were driving home from Fort Walton Beach, Fla. In the car with them were Airman Marc

  • General McNabb takes command of AMC

    Gen. Duncan J. McNabb took command of Air Mobility Command during a ceremony here Oct. 14. During the ceremony, the general discussed the importance of the command now and in the future. "It has been six years since I left here as commander of the (Tanker Airlift Control Center)," said General

  • Air Force testing new transparent armor

    Engineers here are testing a new kind of transparent armor -- stronger and lighter than traditional materials -- that could stop armor-piercing weapons from penetrating vehicle windows. The Air Force Research Laboratory's materials and manufacturing directorate is testing aluminum oxynitride --

  • Electric cars cut fuel costs

    As gas prices soared this summer, the 37th Mission Support Group here searched for something new to help the it lower the cost of official transportation. “With gas prices approaching $3 per gallon, we were looking for something that would be beneficial over the long haul,” said group commander Col.

  • Blood donations still in high demand

    The U.S. military always needs blood in war zones and now, more than ever, it is depending on troops at stateside bases to donate. That is because troops that deploy “down range” cannot donate blood for one year after they return home, said Maj. Julie Zwies, officer in charge of the Expeditionary

  • Moseley: We are moving towards interdependence with sister services

    The Air Force’s future path requires more jointness and interdependence between the total force, sister services and coalition partners. Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. T. Michael Moseley spoke Oct. 11 about this vision for the future of the Air Force, but began with a vision of its recent past. The

  • Maintainers keep Cope Thunder going

    Tucked away in an office on the far corner of the Thunder Dome, two men ensure Airmen and Sailors get Cope Thunder 06-1 missions off the ground -- on time and on target. Without the oversight of Col. Mark Fluke and Chief Master Sgt. Darrin Dwyer, exercise Cope Thunder would, theoretically, only be a

  • Eglin Airmen train Iraqi police

    The introduction of democracy and the reconstruction of Iraq hinges on its police force’s ability to handle those fighting against the transition. So two Airmen from Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., and one from Offutt AFB, Neb., are in the country to make sure the Iraqi police force gets the training it

  • Keesler Airmen back in school at Sheppard

    Sheppard has a new electronic principles course to train Airmen from Keesler Air Force Base, Miss., displaced by Hurricane Katrina. It took Sheppard two weeks to have the course ready for instruction, said Master Sgt. Rosa Marlin, 365th Training Squadron avionics test equipment flight chief. It

  • Uniform board meets this month

    The Air Force Uniform Board meets here Oct. 20 to 21 to consider Air Force uniform improvements and standardization. The board will address various uniform requirements, including the Airman's new battle dress uniform, and Air Force Instruction 36-2903, Dress and Personal Appearance of Air Force

  • AFMC air logistics centers garner Shingo Prize

    Industry leaders recognized Air Force Materiel Command's three air logistics centers for their practical implementation of Lean Transformation practices, ensuring America's warfighters success on the job. Lean is a methodology designed to create value, eliminate waste and allow an organization to

  • 'Gateway to Europe' ends 60-year airlift legacy

    Although 60 years of airlift legacy came to a close, the “spirit” of this base will endure. The long-time airlift hub closed during an Oct. 10 ceremony attended by U.S. and German dignitaries. A C-17 Globemaster III bearing the name “Spirit of Rhein-Main” was unveiled by Lt. Gen. Christopher Kelly,

  • Eddy current inspection shop saves lives, money

    Saving lives and money: That is what employees in the eddy current inspection shop at the Oklahoma City Air Logistics Center are all about. And it is their life management approach to reliability-centered maintenance that allows them to extend the life of rotating jet engine components by

  • Wright-Patterson celebrates an essential step in aviation

    One-hundred years of practical flight were celebrated Oct. 5 on the grounds Orville and Wilbur Wright used to test their legendary Wright Flyer -- launching an aviation era. Mark Dusenberry, pilot and creator of the world's only exact replica of the 1905 Wright Flyer, re-visited the historic moment,

  • Midshipmen cage Falcons, 27-24

    For 59 minutes and 59 seconds Air Force was back. Its three-game losing streak appeared over. Its quest to regain the coveted Commander-In-Chief’s Trophy, symbolic of interservice football supremacy, was on track and its bowl chances were rekindled. But, before the final tick expired, those

  • ETDC supplies gear downrange so deployed troops don’t have to

    The 376th Expeditionary Logistics Readiness Squadron’s expeditionary theater distribution center here is leading the way in expeditionary mobility gear processing to make life easier for thousands of deploying Airmen. The center is part of an Air Force test where Airmen can deploy from their home

  • Robins Airman found guilty on all charges

    A military jury here unanimously found Senior Airman Andrew Paul Witt guilty of two specifications of premeditated murder in the July 5, 2004, stabbing deaths of Senior Airman Andrew Schliepsiek and his wife, Jamie. Airman Witt was also found guilty Oct. 5 of one specification of attempted

  • Edwards, DARPA explore new C-17 capability

    Soaring 6,000 feet above the sun-baked California desert, a pair of Edwards aircraft -- a C-17 Globemaster III shadowed by a C-12 Huron observer aircraft -- carried out an unusual mission with an even more unusual cargo recently. The rear of the aircraft yawned open, and at the prompt of "five,

  • Moseley: C-17 'worth weight in gold' in Pacific

    Basing C-17 Globemaster IIIs in Hawaii will boost Pacific Air Force’s airlift capabilities in the region, the Air Force chief of staff said Oct. 6. Gen. T. Michael Moseley said with the huge transports flying out of Hickam Air Force Base, Hawaii, U.S. Transportation Command and Air Mobility Command

  • Officials name new assistant to secretary of the Air Force

    Department of Defense officials announced Oct. 6 the appointment of Donald M. Kerr as the assistant to the secretary of the Air Force for intelligence space technology effective Oct. 3. Mr. Kerr, also the National Reconnaissance Office director, will support the secretary of the Air Force in

  • Fall 2005 quarterly issue of Airman available online

    Read about the Air Force’s explosive ordnance disposal team in Baghdad disarming the enemy, get inside the Air Force’s response to Hurricane Katrina, follow a little boy named Eddy as he undergoes surgery in Ecuador, and discover the ins and outs of the F/A-22 Raptor. These features and more

  • Reserve wing welcomes change to flying mission

    The 445th Airlift Wing received its first of 11 C-5 Galaxy aircraft Oct. 3. Air Force Reserve Command wings do not change aircraft very often, and the 445th AW is no exception, having flown C-141 Starlifters since the wing’s activation Oct. 1, 1994. All that will soon be history. The C-141s are

  • Barksdale joins Bright Star 2005

    Airmen here recently engaged in a unique international exercise -- Bright Star 2005. The Bright Star exercise takes place every two years in Egypt and includes coalition forces from the United States, Egypt and 12 other countries. Airmen faced several challenges during the exercise which ran Sept.

  • Web-based system changes how orders are processed

    Individual mobilization augmentees have a new way to get military orders through a Web-based system. Air Reserve Order Writing System-Reserve, which began Oct. 1, allows IMAs to initiate the orders process from any computer worldwide. Units can start using the system as early as Nov. 1, said Air

  • Air Warfare Center changes names to USAF Warfare Center

    The Air Warfare Center here officially changed its name Oct. 1 to the U.S. Air Force Warfare Center. The new name more accurately reflects the center's expanding responsibility to integrate space and information operations with traditional air warfare, officials said. The expansion was previously

  • Servicemembers pay respect to fallen Airman

    More than 225 Airmen, Soldiers, Sailors and multinational partners crowded the new base chapel Oct. 6 to pay their final respects to their comrade in arms, Airman 1st Class Elizabeth Jacobson. Airman Jacobson was killed on a convoy near Camp Bucca, Iraq, on Sept. 28 when her vehicle was hit by an

  • Airmen push to limit with turn of a card

    “Right now, I’m at 15,541.” And counting. As he counts down the days before returning home, increasing his push-up total has become a goal for Lt. Col. Jeff Sheppard, the 28th Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron commander at a forward-deployed location. What began as a challenge among several

  • Intel officer assumes command of Air Intelligence Agency

    A career intelligence officer assumed command Oct. 6 of the Air Force organization charged with providing information warfare capabilities to air component and joint force commanders around the world. Maj. Gen. John C. Koziol became the 28th commander of the Air Intelligence Agency and Joint

  • Dawgs put PERSCO back online

    It was 5 p.m. on Oct. 2 and the 407th Personnel Support for Contingency Operations section here was winding down the day shift. The cable dawgs of the 407th Expeditionary Communications Squadron were doing the same. But things changed rapidly 10 minutes later when 1st Lt. Adam Pudenz walked into the

  • Servicemembers who bought gear can claim reimbursement

    Some servicemembers who bought their own protective gear will get reimbursed for the purchase under a new policy approved Oct. 4. David S.C. Chu, the undersecretary of defense for personnel and readiness, approved the directive that allows servicemembers to be reimbursed "for privately purchased

  • Enlisted Village opens assisted living doors

    After two years, a reneged $8-million donation and several major hurricanes, the Air Force Enlisted Village finally opened the doors to Hawthorn House, the latest addition to the community that “provides a home” for widows of retired enlisted Airmen. Hawthorn House, a 64-apartment assisted living

  • Capability assessment helps AF prepare for future

    Air Force leaders use a future capabilities assessment to assist in planning for 2025 and beyond. More than 100 participants from the Air Force's planning, operations, research and development communities gathered Oct. 4 in Herndon, Va., to play out scenarios that may threaten the United States in

  • Texas National Guard relief mission begins drawing down

    With power coming on throughout the area, Texas National Guardsmen with Task Force-Seguin transferred food and water distribution duties to other task forces and local authorities Oct. 4. The team returned to their home units and families Oct. 5. “There are still a few rural areas requiring

  • Officials name vice chair of Scientific Advisory Board

    Dr. Ann R. Karagozian assumed her duties Oct. 5 as vice chair of the U.S. Air Force Scientific Advisory Board, an independent group that provides technical advice to Air Force leaders. Dr. Karagozian, a professor with the University of California-Los Angeles’ aerospace and mechanical engineering

  • Recent changes improve Korea assignment program

    Recent policy changes to the Korea Assignment Incentive Pay program allow Airmen to apply for the program before or after their arrival in South Korea. The program authorizes $300 monthly payments to Airmen who sign a written agreement to serve the prescribed tour length in South Korea plus an

  • Loyal partners sniff out trouble in Iraq

    After a couple of years apart, Ori and Tyreese are partners again. And the security forces duo is deployed and back on the job sniffing out trouble at an entry control point here. Staff Sgt. Tyreese McAllister was the first handler Ori was assigned to after the German shepherd graduated from the

  • Father, son reunite on deployment

    A father finding his son in a desert is tough enough, but when the two are from different services it is even tougher. But that is exactly what happened to this Airman and Soldier. Senior Master Sgt. James Sedoris of the 386th Expeditionary Medical Group, was asked to drive a couple of medics to a

  • U.S. delivering F-15s to South Korea Air Force

    The two newest F-15 Eagles off the Boeing production line in St. Louis are on their way to South Korea. South Korea Air Force officials purchased 40 fighters from Boeing for $4.2 billion, and the first two stopped here Oct. 2 on their way to Seoul. “We have been coordinating with Pacific Air Forces

  • Family support center helps inmates prepare for freedom

    Sue O’Neal believes a repentant Airman who has committed a crime and is serving time in a military confinement facility here deserves a second chance. “We all make mistakes in life,” Ms. O’Neal said. “Some people end up paying for those mistakes -- some don’t. But in my view, no one is a throwaway.”

  • Bioenvironmental engineers keep people healthy

    Staff Sgt. Terrence Jaimungal dips a vial into the Back River and comes back up with water, dirt, grass and other visible objects. But it is the things that cannot be seen by the naked eye that Sergeant Jaimungal is concerned with -- things most Airmen will not notice but can do them harm, such as

  • Cutting-edge communications essential in emergency response

    Communication is like water, heat or air conditioning -- it is virtually invisible when the system is operating smoothly. No one notices it unless it stops. While most military communications technicians understand that attitude and generally stay out of the spotlight, the Incident Commanders,

  • Returning crews brave thunderstorms, land safely

    It is the stuff movies are made from: A thunderstorm wall as high as 45,000 feet and two aircraft -- one with limited radar coverage -- 100 miles from their intended course. After unloading 70 passengers and their cargo at El-Fashir airstrip in Darfur on Sept. 30 as part of the African Union

  • Academy family rewarded for ‘extreme’ caring

    They lined Highway 24 in rural Peyton, Colo., about 30 miles east of here, straining to get a better glimpse of this real life “Field of Dreams.” A stretched limousine carrying an eager academy family pulled carefully alongside a huge bus so they could not see the miraculous transformation their

  • Bagram upgrade taken on by Red Horse engineers

    Aircraft parking space is getting a boost from the ground up here as a team of Red Horse engineers remove and replace 60,000-square meters of ramp space. Once complete, the $4.4-million airfield construction project will provide U.S. and coalition aircraft supporting Operation Enduring Freedom a

  • Academy chemistry department leads UAV research

    Future Air Force leaders here are working to produce a stealthier unmanned aerial vehicle powered by an alternative energy source. The research project into fuel cells and hydrogen storage materials started about 10 years ago as a collaboration between the academy, Ball Aerospace Corp in Boulder,

  • Texas National Guard relief efforts move to rural areas

    As power is restored to smaller cities, Texas National Guardsmen are moving further into rural areas of Texas to assist Federal Emergency Management Agent officials with distribution of food, water and ice to Hurricane Rita victims. Task Force-Seguin, which comprises 300 Army and Air National

  • Volunteers give comfort by sewing

    Sewing circles are not a thing of the past. On Tuesday nights, in a suburb just outside of Washington, D.C., a half-dozen women -- sometimes more -- gather to talk about their week, share a few laughs and sew. They are not sewing for themselves or their families, however. They are volunteers of the

  • Rhein-Main mission ends, but not its legacy

    Bob Keffer is looking for work again. But at age 70, he knows it won’t be easy.But he has no choice. There is no future for him at Rhein-Main Air Base, Germany -- outside Frankfurt -- where he worked for the past 31 years. The base closes this year.Still, he’s optimistic. If he can just find a

  • Chapel 'zips' relief to Katrina workers, victims

    Four weeks after Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast region, the chapel service here continues to accept donations for aid in the ongoing recovery and relief operations here.The chapel is participating in Operation Zip Lock, where they are collecting donations of basic, travel-size

  • Dividends from OEF, OIF pay off for medics in Katrina aftermath

    The Air Force Medical Service’s response to Operation Katrina drew from a process that began in Operation Enduring Freedom, broadened in volume in Operation Iraqi Freedom and paid dividends in the huge military medical response to a devastating domestic disaster, the Air Force surgeon general

  • Services Airmen ensure people get ‘comforts of home’

    Airmen with the 147th Fighter Wing services flight at Ellington Field, Texas, are ensuring everyone supporting Hurricane Rita relief efforts have a hot meal to eat and a comfortable bed to sleep in.While some servicemembers deployed there from various parts of the country are sleeping and working in

  • Air Commandos build bonds with African country

    A select team of combat aviation advisors from the 6th Special Operations Squadron here recently deployed to the edge of the Sahara desert to train with the fledgling Niger Air Force.Because the 6th SOS has been to Niger numerous times, the air commandos understand how to adapt to living and working

  • Noise research may open thousands more airports in nation

    Commercial airlines may soon be able to land at 8,000 more U.S. airports because of research involving Air Force test pilots.If the research is applied, no longer will aircraft be restricted from landing at smaller airports because of the excessive noise aircraft make upon landing, according to

  • DOD implements image-based teller system at Community Banks overseas

    A new image-based teller system being implemented by the Community Bank operated by Bank of America is reducing check-processing time at overseas air bases. The new teller system employs the latest technology and incorporates features of the recent Check 21 Act.The new system, already in place in

  • Reservists reducing hurricane-born insects

    Hurricane Katrina did more than claim lives and destroy property. The deadliest storm in U.S. history flooded acres of land with standing water, providing a prime breeding ground for mosquitoes and filth flies.To counter a mass increase in mosquitoes in the Gulf Coast region, Air Force reservists

  • Captain one of 10 outstanding young Americans

    A captain with the 116th Air Control Wing here is one of the 10 Outstanding Young Americans for 2005 chosen by the U.S. Junior Chamber of Commerce.Capt. Paul Maykish received the award during the Jaycees’ 67th annual black-tie awards ceremony held at the Boston World Trade Center Sept. 17.The

  • C-141 approaches historical conclusion as last flight nears

    Since its first flight Dec. 17, 1963, the C-141 Starlifter has enjoyed a prestigious history.The last chapter of that history will be written in October when the Air Force's last C-141 unit, the 445th Airlift Wing at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, starts replacing its Starlifters with the

  • Eglin fighters shine at Bright Star

    The 33rd Fighter Wing here was the Air Force’s lone fighter unit in Egypt to participate in the joint-combined training exercise Bright Star 05/06.The exercise, which began Sept. 10 and ends Oct. 3, is U.S. Central Command’s largest coalition exercise. It tests theater engagement activity and boosts

  • Medics transform ‘Toy Land’ into medical treatment facility

    The Texas Air National Guard stood up Task Force Compassion here to provide Hurricane Rita evacuees medical support and to evacuate non-critical patients from overburdened local hospitals.Task force Airmen and Soldiers began setting up a 10-bed medical treatment facility overnight in Ellington’s

  • C-141 flies last mission from combat zone

    For the last time in its long career, a C-141 Starlifter aircraft will fly military patients out of a war zone Sept. 30.The flight from Iraq will end a five-day mission to the Middle East for the airlift plane from the 445th Airlift Wing here. The aircraft first started airlifting the sick and

  • Rehab center to target rebuilding lives

    A former Soldier and his son, now philanthropists, joined wounded warriors and military leaders at Brooke Army Medical Center here Sept. 22 to break ground for two 21-bedroom Fisher Houses and a privately funded rehabilitation center.Arnold Fisher, honorary chairman of the Intrepid Fallen Heroes

  • Predators fly first four-ship sorties

    The latest upgrade to the MQ-1 Predator, known as the Multi-Aircraft Control, or MAC system, entered operational testing with the first two-ship and four-ship Predator sorties being flown over a four-day period.Testers performed two-ship sorties Sept. 12 and 13 and progressed to four-ship sorties

  • Albanian and Slovakian officers visit Warrior Preparation Center

    Nine Albanian and Slovakian officers visited the Warrior Preparation Center here Sept. 20 to 23.The officers viewed hands-on tactics through high-tech training demonstrations at the facility, which is jointly owned by U.S. Army, Europe and U.S. Air Forces in Europe. Although they were there to gain

  • Air Force successfully launches GPS satellite

    The Air Force’s 45th Space Wing, its mission partners and Boeing successfully launched a Global Positioning System satellite into orbit on a Delta II space launch vehicle at 11:37 p.m. Sept. 25. The GPS constellation provides continuous, precise three-dimensional location information -- including

  • Guard unit supports hurricane relief operations at Ellington

    Hurricane Katrina relief operations had just slowed down when Airmen with the 136th Tanker Airlift Control Element had to quickly pack their bags to support another hurricane relief operation -- this time in their home state.The 10-person TALCE team and 26 Airmen from the 136th Aerial Port Squadron

  • Air Force continues Hurricane Rita support

    In response to Hurricane Rita, the Air Force has flown 82 missions supporting evacuation, relief and recovery operations. Additionally, Air Force search and rescue crews began combing the Gulf Coast Sept. 24, and the Air Force's auxiliary volunteer force continues to assist in aerial damage

  • McGuire unit returns from Hurricane Rita mission

    Twenty members of McGuire Air Force Base’s 621st Contingency Response Wing deployed to Beaumont, Texas, Sept. 22 to assist hurricane evacuation efforts for more than 1,900 people at the Southeast Texas Regional Airport.During the vital few hours the Airmen were on the ground, they helped move about

  • Ellington Field ramps up for relief operations

    Airmen who rode out Hurricane Rita at Ellington Field -- near Galveston -- left shelters there to set up an airlift hub to help storm relief efforts.The 147th Fighter Wing cleaned up storm debris Sept. 24 hours after the storm passed through. And by the time the weather cleared enough for flight

  • Falcon’s fourth-quarter comeback falls short in 38-35 loss

    Two touchdown drives engineered by backup quarterback Adam Fitch late in the fourth quarter were not enough in the Falcons’ 38-35 loss to the University of Utah in front of 41,935 spectators here Sept. 22.“We could’a, should’a won, it’s the same thing I said last week,” Falcons head coach Fisher

  • ROVERs aid in search and rescue

    In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, local recovery authorities needed helping seeing what was happening on the ground. That is when Airmen brought in ROVER, the Air Force’s cutting edge combat technology to the table, to support combined rescue operations. The Remote Operations Video Enhanced Receiver

  • Air Force busy before the storm

    Waiting for Hurricane Rita is now a national vigil -- but the Air Force has not been idle, waiting for the storm to hit.Instead, it mobilized.Some Airmen moved to locations nearer to where the hurricane will make landfall -- along the Texas-Louisiana border. They need to be close when the order

  • Airmen take steps to ensure body armor stays intact

    Several unpleasant reactions may have crossed the minds of Airmen when the supply person handed them body armor for a deployment, and "heavy" was undoubtedly the most common reaction.A two-plated vest body armor design, weighing more than some 3-year-olds and a necessity in many deployed locations,

  • Combat convoy course expands to driving 18-wheelers

    The Basic Combat Convoy Course here now includes teaching Airmen to drive tractor-trailer supply trucks and gun trucks as convoy operations in Iraq have evolved into longer, more dangerous missions, course leaders said.All Airmen in the course also are now receiving combat lifesaver training during

  • AMC 'chasing the clock' to move Hurricane Rita evacuees

    As a second major hurricane bears down on the Gulf Coast region, Air Mobility Command Airmen are helping evacuate hundreds of people from the path of the storm.Hurricane Rita, a Category 3 storm boasting 125-mph winds, is expected to hit the Texas Gulf Coast in the early morning hours of Sept. 24.On

  • Rebuilding of Hurricane Hunters' home begins

    Reservists from the 403rd Wing at Keesler Air Force Base, Miss., continue flying hurricane tracking missions from their temporary working location at Dobbins Air Reserve Base, Ga., while dealing with personal loss suffered from the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.Although many of their neighborhoods

  • Ravens provide security for Hurricane Rita evacuations

    A four-person security forces Raven team left here Sept. 22 for Travis Air Force Base, Calif., along with four other teams from Air Mobility Command bases to provide security for AMC aircraft traveling to Texas and Louisiana.The Phoenix Raven program, implemented in 1997, consists of teams of

  • Former POW ends sortie after 40-year detour

    Retired Maj. Wesley Schierman finally landed his last sortie with the 67th Fighter Squadron here Sept. 19 after a 40-year detour.Originally, he began his flight as a captain with the 67th Tactical Fighter Squadron during the Vietnam War flying an F-105 Thunderchief out of Korat Air Base,

  • Texas guardsmen provide back-to-back hurricane assistance

    Texas Air National Guardsmen returning home from Hurricane Katrina duty had just enough time to catch up on sleep before receiving the order to repack their bags.Now they are preparing to deal with the aftermath of another hurricane, but this time it will hit closer to home. Hurricane Rita is

  • Air Force programs help families rebuild post-Katrina

    Hurricane Katrina is long gone, but civilians and Airmen are still picking up the pieces of their devastated lives.The Air Force helped many civilians in the aftermath of that storm, but it also made sure to take care of its own through Air Force OneSource, family and child development centers and

  • Keeping the mission going at home, away

    It has been nearly six months since the runway here closed for construction and more than 300 base Airmen “deployed” to Fairchild Air Force Base, Wash., to continue the wing’s mission.Since then, a great relationship between the two bases, said Lt. Col. Paul Schultz, the 905th Air Refueling Squadron

  • Historic C-9 heads to Andrews for retirement

    The last remaining active-duty Air Force C-9 Nightingale received a red carpet farewell Sept. 20 when it departed for Andrews Air Force Base, Md.The final C-9, Tail 876 assigned to the 76th Airlift Squadron here, was flown to its new and final resting place at the air museum at Andrews.This