HomeNews

NATO Air Policing operations

U.S. Air Force News

  • Through the eyes of a child

    The military working dog demonstration ended, and the audience dispersed, heading back toward an overflow parking lot where a fire truck and security forces patrol car waited.Lt. Col. Derrick Richardson of the 327th Contractor Logistics Sustainment Group here walked toward the pavilion when a small

  • Federal law assists troops' dealings with creditors

    Federal law prohibits mortgage lenders from immediately foreclosing on homes owned by servicemembers deployed overseas on military duty, a senior legal officer said here.All servicemembers, including those deployed, are protected under the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, signed by President Bush on

  • New course prepares NCOs for joint ops in Southwest Asia

    A new training course for senior enlisted leaders is giving them skills that are proving invaluable for those deployed here, officials said.The Command Senior Enlisted Leader Capstone Joint Operations Module course is giving warfighters the tools they need to operate in an environment in which they

  • Iraqi Freedom deployments help Airmen understand war

    For Tech. Sgt. Aaron Otte and Staff Sgt. Ron Beard, both security forces Airmen assigned to the 416th Expeditionary Mission Support Squadron security forces flight and deployed here from Hill Air Force Base, Utah, supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom on past deployments is something they said they

  • Military dogs dig into security

    Not all Air Force equipment has engines, wings or even operating instructions. One unit here is responsible for equipment that has a mouth packed with sharp teeth and a hide of fur.“Osan has the largest operational dog kennel in the Air Force,” said Tech. Sgt. Jerry Woodard, 51st Security Forces

  • Nine recently selected for promotion to E-8 must now re-compete

    Personnel officials are correcting circumstances that recently led to nine master sergeants being selected for promotion to senior master sergeant in the incorrect Control Air Force Specialty Code during the 05E8 cycle.The problem began when 46 Airmen who were attending the First Sergeant Academy

  • New program aims to improve moving process

    Full replacement value for lost or damaged items is among several changes taking effect in October as part of a new program called “Families First” which aims to improve the moving process for military families. “We’re going to have a lot of happier campers because they are not going to be losing

  • Combat communicators provide more than ‘terabyte’ of support

    If you ask Staff Sgt. Brandon Miranda what a “terabyte” is, the communications-computer systems operations journeyman with the 416th Expeditionary Mission Support Squadron communications flight here will tell you it is a computer server that can store more than 1,000 gigabytes.For the nearly 1,000

  • Female officer balances work, family

    Balancing a career and a family is difficult for everyone. When that career in question is commanding the 103 personnel in the medical operations squadron here, the challenge can be immense.Lt. Col. Joycelyn Elaiho, a pediatric nurse practitioner who is the 66th Medical Operations Squadron

  • Exercises prepare Airmen for deployment

    The Air and Space Expeditionary Force Center here nominates sourcing for about 38 exercises each year so Airmen can exercise their deployment capabilities before actually deploying, officials said.Exercises provide a realistic contingency environment to familiarize combat operation forces and

  • Officials recognize company for contributions to war on terror

    Air Force officials recognized FedEx for the company's support to the military during the war on terror with a brief surprise ceremony at the Pentagon on March 22.Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. John P. Jumper presented Frederick W. Smith, FedEx chief executive officer, with a certificate of

  • Personnel chief outlines NSPS, other initiatives

    Defense Department civilians soon will be paid for productivity rather than longevity, while in the future, servicemembers may be required to serve longer tours of duty and spend more time in the military before becoming eligible for retirement.These initiatives are part of efforts by officials to

  • General explains new DOD sex-assault policy

    The new guidelines for reporting incidents of sexual assault within the military create, for the first time, a Defense Department-wide standard that will provide victims with the support they need after incidents occur and help commanders get to root causes of the problems, the head of the Pentagon

  • AFIT graduates Class of 2005

    More than 230 scientists and engineers received graduate and doctorate degrees from the Air Force Institute of Technology here March 21. AFIT’s Graduate School of Engineering and Management held its 2005 graduation ceremony at the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force. The graduating class was

  • Officials announce new chief of AF Scientific Advisory Board

    Acting secretary of the Air Force Peter B. Teets selected Heidi Shyu as chair of the Air Force Scientific Advisory Board on March 22. The board is an independent group that provides technical advice to Air Force leaders. Ms. Shyu, an electrical engineer with Raytheon Company, will start her duties

  • Joint Red Flag bringing big picture together

    One of the nation’s largest integrated exercise involving live and virtual simulations is well under way at locations throughout the United States.Joint Red Flag is a training exercise for U.S. military and coalition forces to enhance operational effectiveness, exercise officials said. More than

  • College tests offered for Airmen manning internment camp

    Armored Humvees roll in and out of here several times a day escorting supply convoys. But they brought a unique passenger and cargo to this remote outpost March 17.The passenger was Staff Sgt. Alan Smith, 386th Air Expeditionary Wing test control officer. His cargo was a box full of College Level

  • Officials announce Air Force safety awards

    Air Force safety officials announced the winners of the 2004 safety awards.They are:-- Secretary of the Air Force Safety Award: Category I, U.S. Air Forces in Europe at Ramstein Air Base, Germany; Category II, Air Force Academy, Colo. -- Maj. Gen. Benjamin D. Foulois Memorial Award: Air Combat

  • Special ops request funding to modernize, transform

    A continued need for modernization and transformation of special operations forces brought that community’s leaders to Capitol Hill on March 17 to testify on their portion of the president’s military spending request.The fiscal 2006 defense budget request that President Bush submitted to Congress

  • New DOD sexual-assault policy affords victims privacy

    New guidelines for confidential, restricted reporting of sexual assaults in the Defense Department were announced March 18 in a Pentagon briefing.“The policy allows victims -- and here’s the big change -- to report a sexual assault to specified individuals without necessarily initiating an

  • Changing DOD's global posture an 'enormous undertaking'

    Pentagon officials’ move to change their global footprint will be an “enormous undertaking” that will be “unprecedented,” the Defense Department’s director of strategy on global posture said here March 17.Barry Pavel said this could well be the first time that any country has purposely designed a

  • DOD officials release tri-service academy climate survey data

    Department of Defense officials released survey data from the three service academies March 18 on the climate of sexual harassment and assault among cadets and midshipmen.During the spring of 2004, the DOD inspector general conducted the survey at the military service academies in response to a

  • Military pay, allowances recognize troops' contributions

    Since the Sept. 11 attacks, Defense Department leaders and U.S. legislators “have worked together to increase servicemembers’ basic pay by more than 21 percent,” a senior DOD official told House Armed Services Committee members March 16.DOD officials remain “committed to taking care of

  • OIF two years later: Progress continues on all fronts

    On March 18, 2003, the clock was ticking on President Bush’s ultimatum for Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein and his sons to leave Iraq within 48 hours.The next day, two days after the president’s televised ultimatum, coalition forces launched operations to disarm Iraq.“On my orders, coalition forces

  • SRB list drops to 32 specialties

    Air Force officials made significant changes to the selective re-enlistment bonus program as a result of continuing force-shaping efforts. Based on the findings of a review in October, officials have published the latest list, which contains 32 Air Force specialties, down from 62.The new list is

  • Teets submits resignation

    Peter B. Teets, acting secretary of the Air Force, announced his resignation March 18, to take effect March 25. “I'm honored to have served the president, the secretary of defense and with the dedicated Airmen of America’s Air Force and the men and women of the National Reconnaissance Office over

  • OIF experience benefits Airmen deployed elsewhere

    For two years now, Airmen have deployed to support Operation Iraqi Freedom, serving either in Iraq or locations elsewhere in Southwest Asia.Many Airmen deployed here said previous experience supporting OIF has paid dividends in understanding even more their current deployment supporting Operation

  • Air Force 2005 design and construction award winners named

    Air Force officials announced the winners of the 2005 Air Force Design Awards, Air Force Agent Awards and Air Force Design Excellence Awards.Recipients of an honor award in the design competition:-- Concept Design: indoor community pool at Osan Air Base, South Korea.-- Interior Design: bowling

  • Joint Red Flag 2005 kicks off at Nellis

    More than 10,000 servicemembers from all four military branches, along with troops of some coalition forces kicked off Joint Red Flag 2005 March 14. The goal of the training exercise, which is scheduled to end April 2, is to develop improved joint training and experimentation

  • DOD programs ease force stress without hiking end strength

    Ongoing Defense Department transformation initiatives are designed to relieve force stress without increasing the number of military forces, a senior defense official told House Armed Services Committee members March 16.“By focusing attention on efforts to reduce stress on our forces, we believe we

  • Airman gets 35 years for forcible sodomy conviction

    An Airman here was found guilty of forcible sodomy in a court-martial and sentenced to 35 years confinement. After three days of testimony and deliberation, a panel of officers found Staff Sgt. Michael Rangel, of the 97th Communications Squadron, guilty of forcible sodomy on diverse occasions and

  • SAR teams pay close attention to detail

    The military teaches all Airmen to pay close attention to every detail, but for search and recovery teams, attention to detail is not just important, it is a way of life.If an accident were to happen involving Airmen, the team would be called into action. The team, consisting of at least 26 Airmen,

  • Voting assistance program kicks off slogan contest

    Federal Voting Assistance Program officials are accepting entries until July 10 for the program’s latest slogan contest.The winning slogan will be featured in the program’s 2006-2007 media campaign, which will focus on increasing voter awareness among U.S. citizens worldwide and encouraging them to

  • Deployed Airmen, Soldiers reach out to Bedouin children

    A convoy of Army and Air Force vehicles assembled recently at the 407th Expeditionary Security Forces Squadron’s armory here, but this was not a standard convoy. These trucks were not carrying materials for troops; they were loaded with toys, shoes, clothes and other items donated to an outreach

  • BRAC turned out to be good news for Texas capital

    Though the fear of losing jobs and revenue grips nearby cities and towns when the Defense Department decides to close a military installation, the bad news can be made good.Such was the case when Bergstrom Air Force Base here closed in 1993, its fate sealed by the 1991 Base Realignment and Closure

  • Eglin Airmen go to war with stumps, trees

    When Hurricane Ivan hit the coastal area here Sept. 16, destructive winds as high as 130 mph knocked down power lines and countless trees. It left a devastating mark on the landscape of Northwest Florida, including nearby Bob Hope Village, one of two Air Force Enlisted Village locations.Six months

  • Benefits offset exchange rates at overseas military banks

    Servicemembers overseas will not suffer from higher currency exchange rates at military banks, officials said, because allowances increase to offset the higher rate.Defense Finance and Accounting Service officials said that overseas servicemembers and other customers of the Community Bank have asked

  • Guard Airmen help drive transformation

    A C-5 Galaxy and a prototype of the Army’s new general-purpose cargo vehicle arrived here March 12.The vehicle is for use with both the C-5 and the C-130 Hercules, and has the ability to go for 72 hours without stopping to refuel. The ability to transfer cargo directly from the aircraft and carry

  • Escorts serve as base’s second line of defense

    They come from different career fields, but while deployed, they come together to serve as a critical line of defense for the base.Deployed Airmen throughout U.S. Central Command’s area of responsibility serve as escorts to foreign workers daily. The program falls under each base’s expeditionary

  • C-130 crew delivers cargo, morale to remote locations

    When Soldiers, Sailors or Marines need something moved, C-130 Hercules crews here answer the call, and recently, that request took one 746th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron crew to Africa and beyond.Their cargo ranged from helicopter rotors to medical supplies to personal mail. Their mission was to

  • Myers: Work toward jointness, but take pride in services

    Jointness is the way ahead, but that does not mean Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Marines are going to merge into some national joint force, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said here March 13.Gen. Richard B. Myers spoke to U.S. servicemembers at the embassy here and complimented them on

  • Afghan generals praise contributions of Robins Airman

    Several Afghan officers visited here March 10 to recognize an Airman for helping establish a computer network system for the Afghan military.Senior Airman Jason Lindgren, a 78th Communications Squadron computer networking specialist, forged a close-working relationship with Afghan Brig. Gens. Mehrab

  • AETC names new command chief

    Air Education and Training Command officials recently named Chief Master Sgt. Rodney Ellison as the command’s new command chief master sergeant.As the command’s top enlisted Airman, Chief Ellison succeeds Chief Master Sgt. Karl Meyers who retired March 11.The command chief master sergeant advises

  • Air Force officials project budget shortfall

    Supporting the war on terrorism and ongoing operations around the world have created a projected budget shortfall forcing the Air Force to tighten its belt.Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. John P. Jumper has directed all major commands to cut back on low priority spending in an attempt to stave off a

  • Task force aims to prevent sexual assault

    Everyone has a role in preventing and responding to sexual assault, said the commander of the Joint Task Force on Sexual Assault Prevention and Response during her remarks at a women’s history luncheon here.Brig. Gen. K.C. McClain assumed command in October 2004. The task force is establishing

  • Troops become U.S. citizens during Bush library ceremony

    It’s been a long time coming, but U.S. Army Spc. Arafat Khaskheli, who was born in Saudi Arabia but whose nationality is Pakistani, can finally say that he is truly an American.“The feeling is really great, I’ve waited for this a long time,” Specialist Khaskheli, 28, of Fort Hood, Texas, said March

  • Teets tells Congress lasers-based communications coming

    The military's senior adviser on space testified before Congress on March 8.Peter B. Teets, who serves as both the acting secretary of the Air Force and the Department of Defense's executive agent for space, spoke to the House Armed Services Committee subcommittee on strategic forces about the

  • Communities affected by BRAC have transition partner

    As the next round of base realignment and closure looms on the horizon, officials at the office of economic adjustment stand ready to assist affected communities.The office’s role is to help communities affected by Defense Department program changes, said Patrick O’Brien, the office’s director. That

  • Technicians use aircraft wreckage for testing

    After 11 years of service as a flight trainer, a T-1A Jayhawk aircraft is joining the Aeronautical Systems Center here.The aircraft, although damaged past the point of repair, still has its avionics and other subsystems intact, along with most of its fuselage. Technicians in the center’s training

  • Airman performs CPR, saves toddler

    Most people don’t remember what they were doing Jan. 23, but for the Clemsic family the date is one they said they will never forget. It was on this day that 23-month old Jason Clemsic nearly drowned in an icy pond behind the family’s off-base home.The boy’s mother, Tech. Sgt. Carmen Clemsic of the

  • Airmen help local school rebuild greenhouse

    Hurricane Ivan destroyed a nearby elementary school’s greenhouse in September, and the school has been without one ever since. So, the school’s principal Dr. Van Crigger, asked Airmen here for help. About 15 Airmen from here and nearby Duke Field volunteered to help. The school’s “Mustang

  • Health officials recommend changes to fitness program

    Air Force health officials recommended seven changes to the fitness program during the program’s first annual review.This first annual assessment consists of reviews by three panels: functional, external and leadership, said Lt. Col. Sherry Sasser, chief of health promotions for the Air Force

  • States let taxpayers donate refunds to military families

    Illinois led the charge last year when it began letting taxpayers check a box on their state tax returns to donate their tax refunds to families of deployed guardsmen and reservists.Illinois’ example -- which has paid out $2.7 million so far to more than 5,000 military families -- is quickly

  • Air Force center takes Public Agency Award

    The Air Force Center for Environmental Excellence here has won the first Public Agency Award presented by the Society of American Military Engineers.Based in Alexandria, Va., the society is a professional organization that includes members from all the military branches as well as the public and

  • Air Force surgeon general testifies on four health effects

    The Air Force surgeon general spoke before Congress on March 3 on the state of medical care for servicemembers serving in the war on terrorism. Air Force Surgeon General Lt. Gen. (Dr.) George Peach Taylor Jr. told members of the House Armed Services Committee subcommittee on military personnel that

  • Good vibrations, music lends healing hand

    Have you ever found yourself tapping your foot or bobbing your head when listening to upbeat music? It is nearly impossible for most of us to sit perfectly still when we hear a beat we like. Similarly, a softer, slower rhythm can be calming and relaxing. These involuntary motor responses to

  • GPS satellites help outdoor hobbyists link up

    The coordinates N 47 degrees 12.595 W 110 degrees 55.990 mean very little to most people, but to a group of hunters know as “geocachers,” it is the beginning of an adventure that starts on a nearby mountainside and ends with a hidden treasure in the belly of a state park.Geocaching is a sport where

  • Fitness instructor loses nearly half of herself

    Keyra Donaldson was sitting on the bathroom floor while her children were taking a bath. Her back was in pain, and her patience was growing thin because they were taking too much time in the tub. This was the moment, she said, when she admitted to herself that she was severely overweight.The year

  • Bracelet draws Airman, family together

    When Senior Master Sgt. Cheryl Wells chose a “prisoner of war and missing in action bracelet,” she did so for many reasons, none of which included being a part of the Airman's family.That selection happened three years ago when Sergeant Wells began her work as the program manager here at the Air

  • Airmen connect with Uzbeks through donations, volleyball

    Six Airmen from here helped deliver needed medical supplies to a clinic in nearby Khanabad on March 3. Serving to strengthen ties between cultures, the Airmen rounded out their trip to the village with several games of volleyball at a local school with students and community members.The trip was

  • Filipino Airman sets his sights high

    He left a career, his home country and some members of his family to become part of the bite behind America's bark.Airman 1st Class Michael Dizon is an Airman-in-training at the 381st Training Squadron here, studying to become a dental technician. But he was much more than that before enlisting in

  • Air Force reaches privatization milestone

    The Air Force recently surpassed the 10,000-home milestone in its military family housing privatization program. In February, Air Force officials closed a deal privatizing more than 1,300 homes at Hickam Air Force Base, Hawaii. This means the Air Force now has more than 10,900 privatized homes.

  • Airmen ready to snag an Eagle

    The Airmen of the 386th Expeditionary Civil Engineer Squadron power production flight ensure there is plenty of electricity to power facilities here. However, another crucial aspect of their job is maintaining and operating the mechanical system that stops problem aircraft on the runway. During

  • PERSCO Airmen count ‘boots on the ground’

    In any combat environment, having “boots on the ground” can be the deciding factor in an operation. The mission for counting those boots at deployed locations falls on the Personnel Support for Contingency Operations Airmen.The four-person PERSCO team here, composed of servicemembers from Randolph

  • Program offers subsidized child care to Guard, Reserve

    Department of Defense officials have joined forces with national agencies to help Guard and Reserve families in finding and affording child care while a parent is deployed supporting the war on terrorism.“Child care, as you know, is one of the top (concerns) voiced by families as well as by commands

  • Air Force announces selections to senior master sergeant

    Air Force officials selected 1,535 master sergeants for promotion to senior master sergeant. The promotion list will be publicly released March 9 at 9 a.m. CST, and the complete list should be available by 5 p.m. CST on the Air Force Personnel Center Web site at www.afpc.randolph.af.mil/eprom/. The

  • Exercises test mobilization process

    Air Force officials will kick off a "push-pull" mobilization test March 10."Push-pull" is the process used to quickly access and return reservists, categorized as Pretrained Individual Manpower Airmen, back into the active-duty force to meet wartime and contingency needs. They are Individual Ready

  • Integrated training smoothes future joint operations

    As the face of battle has changed with more and more multiservice operations, interservice training for all ranks is becoming an increasing necessity to win the fight on global battlegrounds, officials said.Command and staff war colleges have been holding integrated training for decades, ensuring

  • Airmen track terrorists off base

    To keep Balad Air Base, Iraq safe and secure, the Airmen of Task Force 1041 venture off base daily to take the fight to the enemy.“This is a war against insurgents, and the battlefield is asymmetric,” said Lt. Col. Chris Bargery, task force commander. “The vast majority of attacks against air bases

  • Teets discusses recapitalization, death benefit, core values

    The acting secretary of the Air Force spoke on Capitol Hill March 2 about recapitalizing aging systems, the death gratuity and recent problems within the service.In testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee, Peter B. Teets explained the importance of modernizing the service's fleet of

  • Officials working to retain seasoned special operators

    A new incentive package is expected to help the military better compete against other federal agencies and the private sector for skills possessed by special operations forces, said the Defense Department’s top official on special operations and low-intensity conflict.Assistant Secretary of Defense

  • Proper hygiene keeps coalition fit to fight

    Proper hygiene is critical to remaining combat-ready.To ensure servicemembers stay healthy, most forward-deployed locations throughout Afghanistan offer plenty of opportunities for good hygiene, like running water for showers and hand-washing stations next to the chow line.However, the situation

  • Basketball tourney open to all services

    Servicemembers and their families will have an opportunity to compete in a 3-on-3 single-elimination basketball tournament at military bases coast to coast.The tour begins March 5 at Lackland Air Force Base, Texas. It moves to Fort Bragg, N.C. on March 19 and then goes to Fort Knox, Ky., on March

  • President nominates General Looney to head AETC

    President Bush has nominated Lt. Gen. William R. Looney III to be the next commander of Air Education and Training Command, Air Force officials announced Feb. 28.General Looney, who also is nominated for his fourth star, is the commander of the Aeronautical Systems Center here. Both nominations

  • New Horizons provides training, spreads goodwill

    Nearly 600 U.S. servicemembers from every branch of the military are working together with Salvadoran military and civilian counterparts to improve communities with humanitarian-assistance projects.The lead unit for the U.S. Southern Command-sponsored readiness training exercise, New Horizons 2005

  • Hanscom children honored with medal

    Base officials have a new medal in their arsenal to recognize family sacrifices made during the war on terrorism.The Children's Home Front Hero Medal, which features a replica of the American flag, is for children of deployed servicemembers.Dawn Andreucci, a community readiness consultant for

  • Vet centers offer grief counseling to military families

    In an unprecedented expansion of its traditional client base, Department of Veterans Affairs officials are offering grief counseling to families of servicemembers who die while on active duty.VA’s readjustment counseling office offers the counseling services at its 206 community-based vet centers

  • Air Force announces OTS selections

    More than 120 people were selected for an Air Force commission, Air Force Recruiting Service officials here announced March 2. The officials considered 266 applications as part of Officer Training School Selection Board 0503, which selected 128 people for a 48 percent selection rate. Of those, 17

  • Lacrosse team opens with win in sports recap

    Led by five goals from Conrad Lochocki, the Air Force lacrosse team opened its season Feb. 27 with a victory, downing Virginia Military Institute, 12-8, in Lexington, Va.The Falcons dominated offensively for most of the game, outshooting the Keydets, 36-28, and had a 26-21 ground ball advantage.In

  • General Myers addresses academy cadets

    Two incompatible visions locked in a struggle for hearts and minds pose a special challenge to present and future military leaders, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff told cadets here Feb. 24.Gen. Richard B. Myers spoke to about 2,000 cadets about today's leadership environment during the

  • Officials break ground for F/A-22 maintenance training center

    Sheppard is set to become the premier training center for F/A-22 Raptor maintenance professionals, officials said Feb. 18 during the ground breaking ceremony here for a $19.7-million training facility. Students new to aircraft maintenance will become maintainers of the Air Force's newest fighter in

  • Commissaries promote awareness of military’s ‘OneSource’

    Need advice on consumer debt? Feeling depressed? Help is available. Military OneSource is the newest member of the military family support team, and commissaries are helping increase awareness of the program.Provided by the Defense Department at no cost to servicemembers and their families, the

  • Family finally gets official word on Korean War vet's fate

    More than a half-century after North Korean fighter jets shot down Capt. Troy Cope's F-86 Sabre over Dandong, China, his family finally has official word of what happened to him and is preparing to bury him this May.Chris Cope, who was born too late to ever know his uncle, calls this homecoming an

  • Tuskegee Airman visits Cannon

    Retired Lt. Col. Herbert Carter is the embodiment of walking history. He was part of the 99th Pursuit Squadron, the famous “Red Tails,” made up of a group of black pilots known as the Tuskegee Airmen.Colonel Carter visited here recently to speak at Cannon’s Black History Month dinner.“I actually

  • Americans reach out, help Afghans

    With the generosity of people in the United States, coalition troops here were able to make the lives of 30 Afghan families a little bit better Feb. 22.Beginning in November, Soldiers of the 105th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment, deployed from Kansas and Oklahoma, received donations from their

  • Officials spread word about DOD civilian jobs

    Human resources specialist Linda K. Stouffer said when she visits college campuses, she tells students the Defense Department is "the 'employer of choice,' and our job is to support America's defense around the world."Ms. Stouffer, who works for the DOD civilian personnel management services defense

  • Missing Korean War Airman identified

    Department of Defense officials announced Feb. 25 that the remains of an Air Force pilot, missing in action from the Korean War, have been identified and will soon be returned to his family for burial with full military honors.Capt. Troy Cope of Norfolk, Ark., will be buried in Plano, Texas, on May

  • C-130J circumnavigates globe

    Crossing 33 time zones, and stopping in nine locations and seven countries, a Reserve crew from the 403rd Wing here circumnavigated the planet in a C-130J Hercules. This was a first for the new airlifter.The global trek was the culmination of a series of events that included the Aero India

  • Judge advocates ensure people are protected, disciplined

    Truth, justice and a speedy trial within the military judicial system may not be concerns weighing on a servicemember’s mind on a daily basis, but as a victim of a crime or as an Airman being accused of a crime, these concerns are things you not only think about, they are things you expect.The U.S.

  • Cyber security ‘boot camp' approved by ROTC

    A cyber security boot camp course here was approved as professional development training for Air Force ROTC.The advanced course in engineering is one of 10 such programs in the country to carry this designation, and the only program with a formal academic component, officials said. It is associated

  • First lady praises troops, families in Germany

    For U.S. troops fighting the war on terror, "heroism with a human touch is part of the mission," first lady Laura Bush told troops and their families at Ramstein Air Base, Germany, during a visit Feb. 22.Mrs. Bush traveled to Kaiserslautern, the largest American military community outside the United

  • Troops deal with stress of working 'inside the wire'

    Working "inside the wire" of the enemy combatant detention facility can lead to stress for the U.S. troops working here. But experts and leaders are working hard to help servicemembers deal with the unique conditions of working on this isolated island base.Stress-control issues are something the

  • Extended deployments affect only 200

    Air Force officials are designating some positions in U.S. Central Command’s area of responsibility as 365-day extended deployments in an effort to provide stability and allow for long-term relationship building with host governmentsThe new tour lengths will affect only about 200 key and critical

  • Scam targets families of servicemembers killed in action

    Officials with the Department of Homeland Security are warning the public about two new Iraq-related Internet scams, including one directed at the relatives of fallen U.S. servicemembers. "These new Internet fraud schemes are among the worst we have ever encountered," said Michael J. Garcia,

  • Villages receive emergency relief from Soldiers, Airmen

    In a 40-person, 16-vehicle convoy of Soldiers and Airmen from here traveled more than 30 miles southwest into the Afghan mountains, delivering humanitarian aid to two snowbound villages.Enough blankets, clothes, food and medicine were provided for 2,700 households, officials said. “Our mission was

  • War highlights need for military medical transformation

    While peak combat readiness is a persistent goal of America's armed forces, much less has been made of the state of the military's medical readiness, especially with regard to support systems and processes for returning National Guard and Reserve servicemembers wounded in the war on terror.In a

  • Air Force chaplains serve to keep Airmen fit to fight

    For those who think chaplains deploy with the sole responsibility of running church services on Sunday, think again. Their purpose stretches beyond the confines of a chapel.Whether it is a worship service, choir practice, counseling sessions, Bible study, or just a visitation to a work center on

  • Interdependence more than just joint warfighting

    The Air Force must balance its capabilities and capacities to reach the joint interdependence with its sister services it needs to win in today’s battlespace.That is the message Lt. Gen. Ronald E. Keys, Air Force deputy chief of staff for air and space operations, delivered here Feb. 18 to about

  • Twice-yearly TSP 'open season' limitations end July 1

    Defense Department civilians and servicemembers building tax-free retirement accounts through the Thrift Savings Plan soon will be able to change their investment options at any time instead of just twice a year.Current biannual TSP "open season" investment-choice windows will end July 1, said Army