HomeNews

NATO Air Policing operations

U.S. Air Force News

  • Global posture realignment to take place over time

    "The first message I would pass to troops and their families is that they needn't pack their bags," a senior Department of Defense official said Aug. 17, referring to plans for globally realigning U.S. armed forces.Andrew Hoehn, deputy assistant secretary of defense for strategy, reassured

  • Forward-deployed civilians play vital role in terror war

    The death of a Department of the Air Force civilian in Iraq on Aug. 8 brings attention to some of the unsung heroes of the war effort: Thousands of Army, Air Force, Marine Corps and Navy civilian employees who have voluntarily put themselves in harm's way to support the war on terrorism.Special

  • Crew chief follows, sets example

    "I want everyone I meet to know how proud I am to be part of the best air force in the world," said Tech. Sgt. Scott Stout, an F-15 Eagle maintenance trainer assigned to the 372nd Training Squadron’s Detachment 12 here."I like seeing the reflection of my ribbons and medals in people's eyes,”

  • Holloman maintainers training at Kunsan

    Wearing chemical warfare gear is nothing new for F-117 Nighthawk maintainers from the 49th Fighter Wing at Holloman Air Force Base, N.M. Wing Airmen have been to almost every “hot spot” in the world supporting Air Force global missions.About 300 Airmen and their stealth aircraft from Holloman are

  • Civil engineers benefit from F-117 deployment

    Civil engineers are reaping the benefits of an air and space expeditionary force deployment of F-117 Nighthawks here. Building and maintaining a home for about 300 Airmen from the 49th Fighter Wing at Holloman Air Force Base, N.M., has been a great training opportunity for the civil engineers, said

  • Bush announces global posture changes during next decade

    The United States will redistribute forces now stationed at overseas locations "where the wars of the last century ended," President Bush announced in Cincinnati on Aug. 16. The president's announcement came during an address to the national convention of the Veterans of Foreign Wars. "The world has

  • Expeditionary fuels flight fighting gas spills

    When a 50,000-gallon capacity fuel bladder reaches the end of its lifespan, there is little anyone can do to stop the massive rupture and potential tidal wave in the fuel pits.But that is what the Airmen of the 380th Expeditionary Logistics Readiness Squadron try to foresee and head off every

  • CMSAF speaks to Nellis Airmen

    Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force Gerald R. Murray visited here Aug. 11 and 12 and during his stay stressed that Airmen are the Air Force’s most important assets.“The strength of the Air Force is no longer the aircraft flying over the targets; it’s our Airmen in supply, vehicle maintenance, finance

  • New leadership course for chiefs in final development

    Although the transition to chief master sergeant may not be seamless, a new course will aim at eliminating some of the obstacles newly promoted chiefs may encounter.The Chief Master Sergeant Leadership Course, developed at the Air Force Senior NCO Academy at nearby Gunter Annex, becomes the fourth

  • Now showing: Aug. 16 edition of AFTV News

    The expanded role of North American Aerospace Defense Command headlines the latest edition of Air Force Television News. In a special “Eye on the Air Force,” Tech. Sgt. Bill Scherer goes to Rome, N.Y., to spotlight the Airmen who make up the Northeast sector of NORAD. He shows how their role has

  • Airman arraigned in Kirtland murder

    An 898th Munitions Squadron Airman here was arraigned in the 2nd Judicial District Court for the state of New Mexico on Aug. 10 for allegedly murdering another Airman also assigned to the squadron.Senior Airman Nathan Roberts is being held at a local detention center on $300,000 bond and faces an

  • Sergeant witnesses birth of son 10,000 miles away

    Tech. Sgt. Troy Goodman did not sit by his wife's hospital bed when she gave birth to their second son. Instead, he sat more than 10,000 miles away in tent city watching the delivery via Webcam.“I was woken up at 2 a.m., and got in touch with my wife at 3 a.m. By 4 a.m., I was logged into the IP

  • USAFE team supports nations contributing troops

    The most recent mission rotating Polish, Latvian, Lithuanian and Ukrainian combat forces to and from the Polish-led sector in Iraq landed at Strachowice Air Base here Aug. 12.A seven-person team from U.S. Air Forces in Europe converged in June to embark on a two-month mission supporting the rotation

  • Hurricane chasers gear up for Charley

    Mother Nature is poised to unleash hurricane-force winds and torrential downpours here in the wee hours of Aug. 13 from Hurricane Charley. While most people at MacDill have battened down the hatches and headed away from danger, the pilots and meteorologists at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric

  • Engine workers keep A-10 flying in Afghanistan

    When A-10 Thunderbolt II pilots fly over Afghanistan, one system ensures they continue to provide top cover for coalition forces.The engines.“Without engines, the aircraft really couldn’t get off the ground,” said Airman 1st Class Quinn Eisenbraun, of the 354th Expeditionary Aircraft Maintenance

  • Lab welcomes 15-year-old doctoral student

    Air Force Research Laboratory experts routinely welcome college students to their facilities and give them a taste of what scientists and engineers do for the military. In turn, they hope to harness the young talent after they graduate.Playing host to Alia Sabur for summer research is not really

  • Engineers design a lighter AC-130 ammunition rack

    The AC-130H gunship’s mighty arsenal has a new home that is lighter and more efficient for the low-flying hunter of the sky. And, its engineers and users said the modification is making a positive difference.A new ammunition rack is more than 1,000 pounds lighter than its predecessor -- a weight

  • JEFX 04 execution phase ends in success

    Two years, three spirals and three weeks of simulated combat in a fictional area of operations culminated in the completion of the Joint Expeditionary Force Experiment 2004 execution phase here Aug. 5. JEFX 04 assessed 15 new initiatives in technology and processes designed to increase command and

  • Veteran recalls historic World War II bombings

    The beginning of the end of fighting in the Pacific during World War II began 59 years ago with a thunderous roar.Some people thought there was another way to get Japan to the peace table. Others thought the drastic measures taken by the United States saved more lives despite the cost.Whatever the

  • Coalition forces come together in operations center

    Despite cultural and language differences between Korean, Dutch, Italian and American forces, controllers in the Combined Defense Operations Center here are one force guarding against a common enemy.The center brings together security forces from the nations based here to gather information and

  • Sergeant sees dollar signs with his idea

    Reading the fine print really paid off for one sergeant here. Staff Sgt. Neal Dion, a 364th Training Squadron aircraft systems instructor, received $10,000 for his submission to the Air Force IDEA program.Sergeant Dion was a liaison for The Boeing Company in the KC-10 Extender program at Travis Air

  • Scientists studying aircrew long-haul comfort

    For many Air Force aircrews, discomfort caused by sitting on extended missions is just part of the job.Col. Kerry Keithcart, a KC-135 Stratotanker pilot for the 434th Air Refueling Wing at Grissom Air Reserve Base, Ind., said he and his crew do what they can to make those longer missions more

  • New system leading way for safer military flights

    Thanks to a new software-based program being implemented here, terminal instrument procedures specialists will soon be able to support flying missions within U.S. Air Forces in Europe’s area of operations more efficiently and with increased safety.The new system, called the Global Procedure

  • 2005 NCO retraining program under way

    Air Force officials want more than 1,000 noncommissioned officers to pick a new job during the voluntary phase of the fiscal 2005 NCO retraining program that began Aug. 3.Eligible NCOs have until Sept. 30 to apply. If the Air Force does not meet its goal of placing 1,098 Airmen from overage career

  • Center professionals helping fight terrorism

    A well-trained terrorist looks for ways to exploit his target's vulnerabilities; however, through training and vigilance, the malicious deeds of America's enemies can be foiled.That is the message people from the U.S. Air Force Counterproliferation Center here want to spread.With the motto, "We

  • Air Force officials announce E-5 promotion rates

    The Air Force has selected 13,625 of 33,306 eligible senior airmen for promotion to staff sergeant, a 40.91 percent selection rate.The Air Force will release the promotion list Aug. 11. The complete list of selectees will be posted to the Air Force Personnel Center's Web page,

  • Team in desert decides when bombs go ‘Boom!’

    In a country still struggling to overcome the devastations of war and terror, U.S. servicemembers are helping rebuild Afghanistan's infrastructure and weed out the terrorist trail left behind.Five explosive ordnance disposal flight people from here are taking part in this process at Khandahar Air

  • JEFX breaks new ground in expeditionary info collection

    The Air Force is breaking new ground at the Joint Expeditionary Force Exercise 2004, with the Visualization of Expeditionary Sites Tool.VEST is an initiative designed for planners to prepare for all phases of air and space expeditionary operations. It is the only support initiative being tested at

  • New procedures will ensure absentee ballots count

    With the 2004 elections fast approaching, the handling of absentee ballots from overseas servicemembers is undergoing intense scrutiny. Air Combat Command's 82nd Communications Support Squadron postal flight is among the many organizations working to make sure these ballots arrive in the hands of

  • Longer school gives security forces more training

    The charter class of a longer, more intensive Security Forces Apprentice Course began here July 23.Training now lasts 65 days instead of 51, and teaches security forces students about missile security, convoy actions, capture and recovery of nuclear weapons, law enforcement, directing traffic and

  • Recruiting school marks 50 years at Lackland

    More than 4.3 million people have joined the Air Force in the past 50 years through the efforts of enthusiastic recruiters trained at the Air Force Recruiting School here.“Every recruiter has to come through this school first,” said Tech. Sgt. Lynn Bryan, one of 14 active-duty recruiting instructors

  • Assessment team answering JEFX questions

    What distinguishes the Joint Expeditionary Force Experiment 2004 here from an exercise is not just the addition of new innovations, but the work of more than 200 people on the experiment’s assessment team.These analysts are responsible for collecting and compiling the experiment findings for

  • Basic cadets finish field training with 36-mile relay

    The academy’s Class of 2008 was only 36 miles away from the end of the field portion of basic cadet training.The second annual Warrior Run began when the first group of cadets moved out at 7:10 a.m. Aug. 5. In all, 1,277 basic cadets and 625 upper-class cadre each ran about three miles of the

  • ‘SOLE power’ present during experiment

    When most people think of special operations forces the image that comes to mind is a dusty, gritty warrior with a rifle in one hand and a land-mobile radio in the other.Within the Combined Air and Space Operations Center these warriors have traded their stealth and rifles for a computer and a

  • Marathon becomes official Air Force event

    The U.S. Air Force Marathon has been flying high for eight years and Air Force Services Agency officials recently approved it as an official Air Force event."The official endorsement has always been kind of understood, it's just never been written formally; now it will be," said Steve Carlyon, the

  • Project helps people ‘de-stress’ through training

    One unavoidable fact about military action is that servicemembers will have to deal with traumatic stress. Defense Department officials are working to find the best way to help troops deal with the harmful effects of the stress people face in combat. One part of that effort is a treatment trial

  • Feeding program will assist warriors with new rations

    The Defense Department's combat feeding program at the U.S. Army Soldier System Center in Natick, Mass., is a "one-stop shop for all combat-rations development, field food-service equipment and total combat feeding systems," according to the Defense Department's combat-feeding director.Gerald Darsch

  • Organizations team up to protect range from lead pollution

    A steel-bullet trap will collect several hundred thousand rounds of lead annually at the 78th Security Forces Squadron’s small-arms range here, thanks to two agencies on base.A cooperative-funding venture between Warner Robins Air Logistics Center’s environmental management directorate and the 78th

  • JEFX analyzes battlespace chain reactions

    Sun Tzu once said, “If you know the enemy and know yourself, the victory is not at risk.”The strategy division of the Combined Air and Space Operations Center here is giving Sun Tzu’s strategy a whole new meaning with a new operational assessment tool being used as part of the Effects-based

  • Sergeant enjoys ‘clowning around’ for children

    At work, he is a supervisor in the Joint Intelligence Center of U.S. Strategic Command here. During his off time, he takes on a whole different persona -- two personas to be exact.Senior Master Sgt. A.J. Johnson has two alter egos, and they both are a couple of clowns. Kleenax is a friendly

  • Warfighters get ‘sneak peak’ at JEFX

    Battle management in the Air Force is changing, and 58 Airmen and two Soldiers from 14 different home bases are helping to shape its future.The Battle Control Center-Experimental, currently being tested and evaluated at the Joint Expeditionary Force Experiment 2004, is a bridge between the Air

  • Contact Center keeping customers No. 1

    A customer satisfaction survey shows a favorable response to the Air Force Contact Center here. Open 24 hours a day, seven days a week (except for Independence Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Day), the contact center staff answers questions from hundreds of people a day from around the

  • Captain finds fitness, less stress with yoga

    Breathing instructions are repeated in minute-long counts while people hold an asana, or posture, that resembles a row boat. Piano music plays while the noon sun bounces around the room’s mirrors, making the atmosphere almost heavenly during the class.This is all part of Capt. William Uhl’s

  • Synchronization system brings awareness to warfighters

    A new set of synchronization capabilities are being tested and experimented with here at Joint Expeditionary Force Experiment 2004, the fifth in a series of major chief of staff of the Air Force-sponsored experiments that test new and emerging technologies.Global Concept-of-operations

  • Explosive disposal team aids warfighters one threat at a time

    Explosive ordnance disposal is a dangerous business under normal circumstances, but add the challenges of a deployed environment and a constant threat of attack and it truly becomes hazardous duty.The Airmen with 332nd Expeditionary Civil Engineer Squadron’s explosive ordnance disposal flight here

  • Airmen help repair runway lights

    Usually when the lights go out in an office, it is an inconvenience; a work stoppage at worst. When the lights go out on the runway, as they did here July 30, the entire mission threatens to come to a screeching halt, creating a domino effect all over the area.It was shortly before lunchtime when

  • Going from Air Force to NASA blue for astronaut wings

    It is the all too famous image seen across the world -- the orange suits, the big smiles, the friendly waves -- as an astronaut crew prepares to launch out of Earth’s orbit. Since the first U.S. manned space flight in 1961, the Air Force has been a part of the nation’s space program.There are some

  • Cycling team finishes weeklong, nearly 500-mile ride

    More than 100 Air Force cyclists wheeled into Clinton, Iowa, at high noon July 31. It was the end of a week and almost 500 miles on the road for the riders participating in the Des Moines Register's Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa.Team Air Force arrived in Clinton in a two-column formation

  • Army, Air Force sharing battle information

    Parked under camouflaged netting in the heat of the Nevada sun is an extended cab Humvee equipped with all the modern comforts of home: vinyl seats, air conditioning, tinted windows and four 23-inch plasma displays.It is not the Army’s version of a stretch limousine, but an element of the Army’s

  • Raptor continuing Air Force's air superiority record

    With air dominance training under way here, the Air Force's newest asset, the F/A-22 Raptor, is proving its worth every day as it nears initial operational capability.The Raptor will eventually replace the F-15 Eagle, an aircraft with an undefeated 104-0 combat record, according to Brig. Gen. Larry

  • August issue of Airman available

    Read about Airmen protecting convoys in Iraq, discover what it takes to become an astronaut, and learn how the rich ecosystem at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., is being protected. These features and more highlight the August issue of Airman magazine, now available in print and online at

  • Airman makes good on promise

    To Airman Diana Herbert, her reason for serving in the Air Force was simple. She made a promise.She did not seek or want the attention she is getting, but that does not change the enormity of her promise to her brother, Army Pfc. Rayshawn Johnson.Airman Herbert, 18, fulfilled her pledge July 28

  • Now showing: Aug. 2 edition of Air Force Television News

    The Air Force’s contribution to treating the wounded in Iraq is featured in the latest edition of Air Force Television News.Tech. Sgt. Pachari Lutke visits Balad Air Base, Iraq, where Air Force and Army doctors, nurses and medical technicians work side by side to deal with battle casualties. For

  • Liaison officers provide link to Naval airpower during JEFX

    For Sailors, it is not the typical tour of duty – witnessing rows of Airmen dimly outlined against the faint glow of computer screens requesting Naval airpower for a coordinated strike against enemy assets.The setting is the Combined Air and Space Operations Center and the tour of duty is the Naval

  • Deployed senior NCOs offered course in leadership

    Future senior noncommissioned officers at one forward-deployed location were recently given an opportunity that until now might have been available only to those at their home stations.Twenty-six master sergeant selectees attended the first Senior Noncommissioned Officer Symposium held in the U.S.

  • Days are long for B-1 aircrews

    The sound is instantly recognizable as the walls of the tents start fluttering. Airmen slowly awaken to hear a light rumbling in their eardrums. Five seconds later they begin to think their tent is sitting on the tarmac of Cape Canaveral during a space shuttle launch. It takes a lot more than just

  • Incirlik Airman found guilty of black marketing

    An Airman here was found guilty of black marketing during a summary court-martial recently.The Airman received a reduction in rank from staff sergeant to senior airman, restriction to base for 60 days and a verbal reprimand.“The Airman needed to accomplish paperwork for personal business, and a few

  • Motorcycle safety important part of critical days

    Since the start of the “101 Critical Days of Summer,” at least 16 Airmen have been injured or killed in motorcycle accidents, primarily because they lacked proper training or were not wearing all the required safety gear when they went down.Rod Krause, the 5th Bomb Wing safety office manager here

  • Major commands highlight support, sustainment issues

    Air Force acquisition and management officials met with Air Mobility Command leaders here July 27 to review programs, discuss sustainment issues and look for ways to better support air mobility warriors.Dr. Marvin R. Sambur, assistant secretary of the Air Force for acquisition; Gen. John W. Handy,

  • Airmen helping researchers by living in the clouds

    A handful of Air Force Academy Airmen are living in the clouds on the 14,110-foot Pikes Peak summit this summer as part of an Army/Air Force acclimatization research study.The U.S. Army Research Institute of Environmental Medicine, based in Natick, Mass., and the academy’s Human Performance

  • Army Guardsmen help save Air Force baby

    Army National Guardsmen here did more than just pull gate security duty late July 27 -- they helped save the life of the 8-month-old daughter of an Air Force sergeant.The infant stopped breathing as the family was passing through a gate on the way to the hospital“It was probably the most frightening

  • Pentagon Channel available to all Airmen

    The Pentagon Channel is available to practically every active-duty, Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve Airman and his or her family thanks to a recent expansion of services.Officials from the office of the secretary of defense for public affairs made the Pentagon Channel free to all cable

  • Tricare South Region begins transition August 1

    Department of Defense officials announced July 28 the continuation of its move toward new military health-care contractors and changes in regional areas of responsibility. On Aug. 1, Tricare-eligible beneficiaries in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, eastern Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina and

  • Gridlock technology brings coordinates to warfighters

    Gridlock, or precision Geo-registration of Imagery from Airborne Platforms, provides a machine-to-machine capability for military imagery interpreters that can do in one minute what a targeteer, or target designator, would take between 20 minutes to never to accomplish.This technology for tomorrow’s

  • Plans on table to sustain Minuteman III

    The officer in charge of America's intercontinental ballistic missile force said plans are well under way to sustain the life of the Minuteman III missile until the year 2020.Maj. Gen. Frank Klotz, 20th Air Force commander, visited here recently and spoke about the future of America's ICBM force.

  • Mask liner giving Airmen a second skin

    A simple innovation in chemical protection gear could save thousands of Airmen’s lives and millions of Air Force dollars, according to the support equipment team here.Known as the second skin, or SS, the recent addition to the MCU-2P and the MCU-2A/P personal protective gas masks adds a literal

  • Air Force ROTC closing detachments next summer

    Air Force ROTC officials are closing detachments at the University of Akron in Ohio, and Grambling State University in Louisiana next summer.In the summer 2007, officials will close AFROTC detachments at the University of Memphis in Tennessee; University of Cincinnati in Ohio; Wilkes University in

  • Air Force leaders support C-130J program

    Air Force officials are standing by the C-130J Hercules as the aircraft prepares to join the fight, despite a recent Department of Defense inspector general report criticizing the program.The Air Force fully endorses the C-130J, senior Air Force acquisitions officials said. The program is one of

  • Infrastructure key to smooth CAOC operations

    The room is abuzz with the sounds of operators and technicians. People are either intently staring at the information coming across their monitors or discussing their next move with someone else in the movie theater-sized room.They are part of Joint Expeditionary Force Experiment 2004, and Nellis’

  • Airmen begin structural analysis of C-5A

    Rolling up their sleeves, people from the 653rd Combat Logistics Support Squadron set about cutting through the skin and muscle of a C-5A Galaxy this week to remove the giant wings and lend a hand to those evaluating the aircraft’s viability for the future.Inspections began last year on a Galaxy,

  • New base map shows ‘big picture’

    People from the 78th Civil Engineer Squadron have given a whole new meaning to the term “big picture” with a new geographic information system that is putting every square inch of the base on the map -- literally.According to Ron Jones, 78th CEG systems administrator, the premise behind the system

  • Phase maintenance prevents problems for aircraft

    Like automobiles, combat aircraft need regular preventative maintenance to minimize breakdowns.Unlike combat aircraft, though, automobiles do not normally need to be virtually dismantled for a 30,000-mile checkup. Each A-10 Thunderbolt II here is taken apart after 400 flying hours so the

  • Pentagon launches 'Operation Blue to Green'

    Sailors and Airmen may soon be able to "Go Army" under a new Defense Department program intended to rebalance the size of the military. The program is generating new opportunities for continued service and career advancement for those willing to transfer into the Army from other services.Under

  • Board meets at academy to discuss issues

    The U.S. Air Force Academy's Board of Visitors met here July 24 and 25 to discuss a variety of issues affecting the institution. The board is required to meet at least annually to review morale, discipline, curriculum, instruction, physical education, fiscal affairs, academic methods and other

  • Reserve forces can seek medical, dental reimbursement

    National Guard and Reserve members who paid their medical and dental bills and saved their receipts may now seek reimbursement from Tricare, officials of the military health-care system announced July 23.Officials said the system will begin processing medical and dental claims for Guard and Reserve

  • Airman pleads guilty to rape charge

    A general court-martial hearing for an Airman charged with rape ended here July 26 with a guilty plea, a sentence of 42 months confinement and dishonorable discharge from the Air Force.A charge of rape was preferred against Airman Basic Darwin M. Paredesillescas May 19 for violating Article 120 of

  • Experiment testing new data system

    The Data Link Automated Reporting System is set to be one of the revolutionary initiatives tested here during the Joint Expeditionary Force Experiment 2004.JEFX 2004 is an Air Force-sponsored experiment that assesses new and emerging technologies that can be quickly fielded.“With this system we’ve

  • Heavy equipment operators gets down, dirty

    Although their primary mission is to maintain the runway here, the heavy-equipment Airmen find much of their work involves dirt -- moving it, smoothing it and grading it.It is a dirty job, but someone has got to do it.“We’re here to make sure the runway stays open,” said Staff Sgt. John Wininger,

  • Secretary Rumsfeld sends message to troops

    The following is a message to the troops from Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld on why the United States is fighting in Iraq:“More than 15 months ago, a global coalition ended the brutal regime of Saddam Hussein and liberated the people of Iraq.“As in all conflicts, this has come at a cost in

  • Air Force ‘founding fathers’ exhibit opens at Pentagon

    Considered to be the “founding fathers” of the Air Force, Gens. Henry “Hap” Arnold, William “Billy” Mitchell and Frank M. Andrews were memorialized July 21 in a new exhibit at the Pentagon. Descendants of the three aviation visionaries were among about 100 people who gathered in the Arnold Corridor,

  • JEFX 2004 execution phase is under way

    The Joint Expeditionary Force Experiment 2004 execution phase is under way here. This is the fifth in a series of large-scale experiments that explore and assess new and emerging air power capabilities.The executing phase began July 19 and ends Aug. 5.Previous meetings, or spirals, focused on

  • Keesler Airmen send aid to Afghanistan

    Thanks to Airmen here, cargo earmarked for needy families is on its way to Afghanistan aboard an Air Force Reserve C-130 Hercules.The 403rd Wing here flew five pallets to Dover Air Force Base, Del., on July 21. Three more pallets are scheduled to leave July 29."I don't think we've done this type of

  • ROTC cadets pass field-training test at Lackland

    “Uncle Sam” requires all Air Force cadets to go through field training before they can think about receiving their commission and sporting the gold second lieutenant bar on their shoulders. Field training is a fierce mental and physical regimen that can make or break the spirits of aspiring Air

  • PME incorporates Fit-to-Fight program

    Professional Military Education students will exercise under a more formal structure beginning in August as part of the Fit-to-Fight initiative. Students will perform physical conditioning three days a week to reinforce the school’s new focus, said Chief Master Sgt. Sharon R. Turk, vice commandant

  • Iraqi, American fighter pilots band together at Balad

    Two former enemies came together for lunch in the spirit of friendship July 20. Six Iraqi air force pilots and 10 American pilots shared stories over lunch at a dining facility and then took pictures together in front of an F-16 Fighting Falcon here. Despite speaking two vastly different languages,

  • Senior NCO promotion video 'demystifies' board process

    Officials from the Air Force selection board secretariat and the enlisted promotions branch at the Air Force Personnel Center here have a new video to help shed light on the inner workings of the selection board process.The video is an effort to educate all Airmen about senior enlisted promotion

  • Air Force bids farewell to World War II hero

    The Air Force family bid farewell to a World War II hero July 20.Retired Maj. Gen. Charles W. Sweeney, the man who flew the historic B-29 Superfortress flight that dropped the second atomic bomb on Japan during World War II, died July 16 in Boston. He was 84. “He was the best patriot, best father

  • FormFlow deleted from publishing site

    After replacing FormFlow software with the Information Management Tool viewer, officials at the Air Force’s departmental publishing office recently sealed the deal by officially taking down all FormFlow forms from its online Web site repository.Established at www.e-publishing.af.mil, users will no

  • Privatization helping DOD meet housing goal

    With funding levels making it increasingly difficult to maintain acceptable housing conditions at many military installations, Defense Department officials in the mid-1990s turned management and maintenance of some 200,000 "below standard" quarters over to private firms."We knew that we would never

  • Teets discusses national security space strategy

    Peter B. Teets, the undersecretary of the Air Force for space, spoke about the future of space during the National Defense Industrial Association symposium on space policy and architecture.Representatives from the secretary of defense’s office, unified combatant commands and service space components

  • AF pharmacies implement new formulary guidelines

    Air Force pharmacies will no longer distribute some high-use, but expensive medications. This was outlined in a memorandum recently sent out to all Air Force pharmacies by Maj. Gen. (Dr.) Joseph E. Kelley, assistant surgeon general for health-care operations.“It’s no secret that (fiscal 2004) has

  • Desert Hawk gives security forces an eye in sky

    Airmen at one forward-deployed location who routinely work, eat, run errands and sleep may not think to look up in the sky. But if they did, they would see something looking right back at them. Flying at about 300 feet above the ground is a small foam aircraft with a built-in video camera. It is

  • Pilot discovers he’s not an ‘American’ after all

    In a perfect world free of glitches, one 380th Air Expeditionary Wing pilot would have arrived at his deployed location hassle-free. But as glitches go, the one this officer ran into was one of the biggest. It all started when Maj. Donald Temple, a 10-year veteran of the U.S. Marine Corps and

  • Nellis Airmen move into first quad dorm

    More than 120 Airmen here received a quality-of-life improvement July 17 when they moved into the Air Force’s first quad-style dormitory.The dormitory provides a quad that will be shared by four Airmen, said Tech. Sgt. Mike Merlo, 57th Equipment Maintenance Squadron dorm manager. “It’s the new

  • Airman helps save boy’s life

    When Master Sgt. James Gunderson volunteered to chaperon his youth group’s field trip to a local lake July 17, he thought his biggest worry would be making sure the children did not get sunburned. But before the day was over, the Air Force Weather Agency sergeant helped save the life of a

  • Next group of Airman-Soldiers set to move into Iraq

    More than 150 Airmen completed the final stages of live-fire convoy training here July 16 before deploying north to Mosul as part of the 494th Air Expeditionary Force Truck Company. “You will be on the frontlines. You will be facing the enemy everyday in some of the most dangerous areas in Iraq,”

  • Air Force communications vital to Army effort in Iraq

    Even though Capt. Alycia Vrosh is afraid of heights, she climbs up a ladder to check on communication equipment atop the Al Faw Palace here. While ensuring the comm lines are good to go, two Blackhawk helicopters circle overhead, and she waves to them.“I love (the crew) and always wave to them when

  • DOD developing training to help potential captives

    Defense Department officials are taking a hard look at the way they train servicemembers to avoid capture and, if they do fall into enemy hands, how to handle themselves.A new "core captivity curriculum," expected to be completed this summer, is designed to update training currently being provided

  • New privacy rules intended to reduce suicide risks

    The Air Force has revised Air Force Instruction 41-210, “Patient Administration Functions,” to better protect privacy rights and ensure an appropriate flow of information between commanders and support agencies.Air Force officials believe this will reduce suicide risks among its

  • American infants receive special gifts from 'hidden grandma'

    An 82-year-old woman from Benwick, England, fills a grandmotherly role to infants born to servicemembers here, even though she has never met a single baby she serves.With no other ties to the tri-base area of Royal Air Forces Alconbury, Molesworth and Upwood, England, or the U.S. military, Queenie