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  • Take a break

    Master Sgt. Mark Kuntz (right) takes a break during a survival, evasion, resistance and escape exercise here. As part of exercise Foal Eagle, Kuntz, a SERE instructor, is helping to train Korean air force members to navigate and guide Air Force rescue units to their location. (U.S. Air Force photo

  • Female astronaut pioneers last frontier

    Whether they sailed across the oceans, climbed mountains, or rolled across the Great Plains, pioneers were first to explore new frontiers. Col. Susan Helms is not rambling across the prairie in a covered wagon, but she is a pioneer. She is an astronaut. Her frontier: space.Helms was the first

  • C-17 crews describe paratroop drop

    Training. Teamwork. Focus. Pride.That is how the commander of the largest airborne mission since 1990's Operation Just Cause sums up the aerial delivery of 1,000 members of the Army's 173rd Airborne Brigade into northern Iraq on March 26.It was the first time a C-17 Globemaster III had inserted

  • Supply lines pumping, sorties rolling

    B-52 Stratofortresses keep rolling down the runway at a deployed location, carrying the fight and firepower to the Iraqi regime.As the operators and maintainers of the 457th Air Expeditionary Group keep the Buffs flying, having parts and equipment at the ready is critical."The relationship between

  • Bush, Blair: Coalition loosening Iraqi regime's 'grip of terror'

    "Slowly, but surely, the grip of terror around the throats of the Iraqi people is being loosened," President Bush said today.Accompanied by British Prime Minister Tony Blair, Bush spoke at a press conference at Camp David, Md. He said coalition forces are "advancing day by day in steady progress

  • Wing's aircrews and support side help maintain mission

    Although most members of the 321st Air Expeditionary Wing may see their participation in the war against terrorism as being behind the scenes, the action is main stage for the flying squadrons at this deployed location.C-130 Hercules crews based here fly daily missions supporting the war effort,

  • Stop-Loss affects deployed airmen

    Even though Air Force officials have identified 99 career fields affected by Stop-Loss, all airmen currently deployed are affected as well.Responding to erroneous news reports and some confusion in the ranks, officials are re-emphasizing how Stop-Loss affects deployed airmen.Stop-Loss is keeping all

  • 'This is for you'

    Today I took a late lunch in town and stopped into KFC, in uniform.I was almost finished with my lunch and had some chicken grease on my fingers. A gentleman from across the room walked over to my table and handed me a folded piece of paper, and said, "This is for you." I reached out my two clean

  • Remote returnees get a breather

    Airmen returning from overseas remote "short" tours will receive six-month exemptions from deploying with their new units on scheduled air and space expeditionary force deployments.The policy change is the result of input from airmen in the field, according to Maj. Gen. Timothy A. Peppe, special

  • Warren missileer crowned as DOD 'Kingpin'

    To win a local sporting event is an achievement, to compete and win at Air Force level is a heralded milestone, and to take home the gold at a Department of Defense event is worthy of gladiator recognition.Second Lt. Rickie Banister, a 319th Missile Squadron missileer, bowled over the competition

  • Sandtrooper

    Airman Matthew Jensen sits atop a Humvee during a sand storm at a forward-deployed location March 26. Jensen is assigned to the 379th Expeditionary Security Forces Squadron. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. David Donovan)

  • Airman grew up behind Berlin Wall

    For Senior Airman Anke Dzincielewski, the day the Berlin Wall fell is one she will never forget."Senior Airman D.," as co-workers call her, was born and raised in Kleinmachnow, a small town on the southwest corner of Berlin in East Germany. She grew up knowing that the West was there but never

  • Preflight

    Capt. Jeremy Quatacker checks preflight forms before an Operation Iraqi Freedom mission. Quatacker is an F-16 Fighting Falcon pilot assigned to the 524th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron at a desert base. (U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Stefan Alford)

  • Air Force, Army leaders examine air-ground ops

    The Air Force and Army chiefs of staff are leading a focused effort to examine air-ground operations in order to improve the two services' combat capability.Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. John P. Jumper and Army Chief of Staff Gen. Eric K. Shinseki said they recognize the need to improve air-ground

  • Association recognizes airman for heroism

    Life-saving actions have earned an Eglin sergeant the Noncommissioned Officer Association's Vanguard Award for heroism.Senior Master Sgt. David Popwell, superintendent of the 96th Ground Combat Training Squadron here, saved the lives of three people injured in a two-car collision on Florida's

  • Fitness center becomes aeromedical facility

    One of the fitness centers here became a contingency aeromedical staging facility March 23.The staging facility, the first of this type stood up by the Air Force since Operation Desert Storm in 1991, is designed to hold injured servicemembers who have been medically evacuated from Operation Iraqi

  • Leaders outline academy overhaul

    Four U.S. Air Force Academy leaders will be replaced as part of sweeping changes designed to ensure a safe and secure environment for the school's cadets, officials announced at a Pentagon press briefing March 26.The changes were announced by Secretary of the Air Force Dr. James G. Roche and Air

  • Airman dies of injuries in Kuwait

    An Idaho Air National Guardsman has died of injuries received from a grenade attack on his tent in Kuwait on March 22.Officials announced Maj. Gregory L. Stone died March 25 at a U.S. Army field hospital in Kuwait.Stone had been serving as an air liaison officer with the U.S. Army's 101st Airborne

  • General: Iraqi regime showing 'true colors'

    The Iraqi regime has "shown its true colors" in recent days with brutality and disregard for international rules of warfare, a U.S. Central Command official said today.Army Brig. Gen. Vincent Brooks, deputy director of operations at CENTCOM's deployed headquarters in Qatar, said Iraqi forces are

  • Sands of time

    Senior Airman Lisa Jones loads air-to-ground missiles for an F-16 Fighting Falcon on the flightline at a forward-deployed location March 25. Jones is a precision-guided munitions crew member with the 363rd Expeditionary Equipment Maintenance Squadron. She is deployed from the 18th Fighter Squadron

  • Mission support

    Staff Sgt. Jennifer Shockley volunteers at the laundry facility at a forward-deployed air base in Southwest Asia. Since the start of Operation Iraqi Freedom, servicemembers from different organizations have taken over the duties of non-U.S. civilians who are no longer permitted on base. With more

  • Coalition on track, forces 'flowing' into Iraq

    After five days of ground combat, coalition forces are more than 200 miles into Iraq and poised to take on forces defending Baghdad, DoD leaders said today.Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Air Force Gen. Richard Myers told reporters at a Pentagon press

  • Air war turns focus to republican guard

    As the U.S.-led war against the Iraqi regime nears the one-week mark, officials from U.S. Central Command said March 25 that coalition air forces have begun narrowing their focus.Maj. Gen. Victor E. Renuart Jr., CENTCOM director of operations, told reporters during a press briefing at the command's

  • Iraq flouting laws of war, Geneva Conventions

    The Iraqi regime is flouting the laws of war and the Geneva Conventions, said Pentagon spokeswoman Victoria Clarke at the news conference today.Clarke said that the deceptions have been so blatant "that some liken it to terrorism.""They are sending forces out carrying white surrender flags or

  • Coalition aircraft flew more than 1,500 sorties over Iraq

    Coalition aircraft flew more than 1,500 sorties in the continuing air war against the regime in Iraq on March 24, coalition officials in the region said today.More than 800 were strike sorties, with 200 of those being flown against "preplanned" targets. The rest were flown against "emerging targets"

  • Navy, Air Force sink Iraqi patrol boat

    U.S. Navy and Air Force assets teamed together to target and sink a fast-attack Iraqi patrol boat in the Arabian Gulf on March 21 using precision-guided ordnance.A Navy P-3C Orion long-range patrol aircraft located and tracked the patrol boat and then relayed the information to an Air Force AC-130

  • Lancer crews describe B-1 missions over Iraq

    B-1B Lancers, combining the latest in technology with old-fashioned elbow grease, are taking the air war of Operation Iraqi Freedom to regime and military targets in every inch of that country.Four members of the 405th Air Expeditionary Wing described their mission to Pentagon reporters in a March

  • Load 'em up

    A weapons load crew from the 22nd Expeditionary Fighter Squadron loads a GBU-31 precision-guided bomb on an F-16 Fighting Falcon on March 24 at a forward-deployed air base. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Derrick C. Goode)

  • K-9 partners operate on vigilance, trust

    At base gates, military working dogs and handlers are doing their part in the war with Iraq while guarding against the threat of terrorism.These threats mean there are more reasons than ever to suspect that America's enemies will target its most valuable resources with explosives or hazardous

  • U.S., aid agencies ready to assist impoverished Iraqis

    United States and international relief workers are poised to enter the Umm Qasr port to address acute shortages of public drinking water and unsafe sanitary conditions in southern Iraq, particularly in the city of Basra to the northwest.Andrew Natsios, administrator of the U.S. Agency for

  • SECDEF: Air strikes not aimed at civilians

    U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld lauded the air coalition's unsurpassed ability to avoid collateral damage during a March 25 press conference in the Pentagon.Speaking directly to Iraqi civilians about the intent of coalition air strikes, the secretary said that there can be no mistake about

  • Wounded troops receive top medical attention in Germany

    One of Ramstein Air Base, Germany's fitness centers became a contingency aero-medical staging facility March 23.The CSAF, the first of this type of facility stood up by the Air Force since the 1991 Persian Gulf War, is designed to host injured service members medevaced here from forward deployed

  • Crash victims identified

    Air Force officials have identified the airmen killed in the HH-60 Pave Hawk helicopter crash in Afghanistan on March 23.The airmen were deployed from here supporting Operation Enduring Freedom. Killed in the crash were:-- 1st Lt. Tamara Archuleta, co-pilot.-- Staff Sgt. Jason Hicks, flight

  • Making 'em smarter

    Airman 1st Class Richard Ludlum prepares an MK-84 "dumb bomb" for transition to a GBU-31 Joint Direct Attack Munition "smart bomb." Four components are added to the MK-84 turning it into a precision Global Positioning System-guided weapon. Ludlum is assigned to the 5th Expeditionary Maintenance

  • Hurry and wait

    More than 250 soldiers from the 720th Military Police Battalion based at Fort Hood, Texas, relax at the tent city here during a stop on their way to support contingency operations. In all, more than 1,300 troops gathered here March 21 to 22, filling the tent city, contingency billeting and fitness

  • Officials discuss progress of air war

    As the number of sorties flown by coalition air forces in Operation Iraqi Freedom reaches into the thousands, officials from U.S. Central Command said March 24 they were pleased with the results of those efforts.Army Gen. Tommy Franks, CENTCOM commander, told reporters during a press briefing at the

  • Wounded arrive in Germany

    Tech. Sgt. John Schiffhauer (right) of the 932nd Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron at Scott Air Force Base, Ill., and members of the 86th Aeromedical Staging Facility here unload a wounded soldier from a C-141 Starlifter on March 24. Twelve soldiers wounded during Operation Iraqi Freedom were

  • Air Force announces maintenance award winners

    Air Force officials recently announced the winners of the 2002 Lt. Gen. Leo Marquez Maintenance Awards, along with the 2002 Maintenance Effectiveness Awards.The winners of the Lt. Gen. Leo Marquez Maintenance Awards are:For aircraft maintenance:-- Field Grade Manager: Maj. David M. Coley, Travis

  • Two Apache pilots missing; progress against Baghdad 'rapid'

    Two American Apache helicopter crewmen are missing in action as coalition forces continue to pound Iraqi Republican Guard units ringing Baghdad, Army Gen. Tommy Franks said today in Qatar.Franks, the combined forces commander, said coalition forces are operating throughout Iraq and that "progress

  • B-52 pilot still flying high after 33 years

    During the evacuation of Quang Tri in 1972, 1st Lt. Bill Jankowski, an O2-A pilot, flew out of DaNang Air Base, Vietnam, to find enemy targets and bring air support assistance to South Vietnamese who were resisting North Vietnamese. Quang Tri had Americans within the area, and Jankowski's role was

  • Pilots face increasing ground threats

    Coalition pilots have not yet had to face the intense air defenses over Iraq they had to deal with during the Gulf War.Still, the Iraqis fire on coalition aircraft on every mission, an A-10 Thunderbolt II pilot with five combat missions in Operation Iraqi Freedom said. And as coalition forces

  • Three deployed airmen featured on MTV

    Three airmen supporting war operations at a forward-deployed location have been featured on "MTV Diaries," a reality series that airs weekly on the international music TV channel.Senior Airman Tia Schroeder, a still photographer with the 405th Expeditionary Communications Squadron, and Airman 1st

  • Ammo airmen build munitions for war

    After two weeks of waiting, munitions airmen at a forward-deployed location began working day and night building M-117 and 85 GBU-31 Joint Direct Attack Munitions for the "shock and awe" phase of the war in Iraq.Arriving at this location March 6, members of the 5th Expeditionary Maintenance Squadron

  • Officials urge against unsolicited troop mail

    To bolster force protection, the general public is urged not to send unsolicited mail, care packages or donations to forward-deployed servicemembers unless they are a family member, loved one or personal friend, said Department of Defense officials.On Oct. 30, DOD suspended the "Operation Dear Abby"

  • Protesters offer training for security

    Security forces here responded to nearly 50 protesters at a base gate March 22 and arrested three.Another group of military supporters gathered at the gate to lend their encouragement to the base and its people.During the weeks leading up to the protest, groups informed the base they would exercise

  • Checking it out

    Senior Airman Adam Kruse communicates with a pilot about to take off on a mission March 20. Kruse is a crew chief deployed to the 363rd Expeditionary Aircraft Maintenance Squadron at a forward-deployed location in Southwest Asia. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Matthew Hannen)

  • American Units Meet Opposition, Still Ahead of Schedule

    Coalition forces are encountering greater Iraqi resistance as they move closer to Baghdad, U.S. Central Command officials said today.News reports indicate that American units are engaging Iraqi battalions. Central Command officials said units with the 3rd Infantry Division have captured a bridge

  • Some Incirlik people return to United States

    The first of several flights contracted to bring more than 1,300 Air Force family members and nonmission-essential civilian employees from Incirlik Air Base, Turkey, arrived at Charleston International Airport, S.C., on March 21.Armed with teddy bears, cell phones and dog biscuits, more than 100

  • Tons of knowledge resides in Air Force Web site

    Just about anything worth knowing about the Air Force, especially on the maintenance and acquisition side, can be found through a collaborative Web system called Knowledge Now.Knowledge Now is almost too big to describe, according to Randy Adkins, Air Force Materiel Command Knowledge Now project

  • Korean War vets get medals 50 years later

    Airman 2nd Class Harry Woodville, a Korean War veteran, has received a medal he waited 50 years for: the Korean War Service Medal.The Republic of Korea first offered the medal 50 years ago, but a law prevented U.S. troops from accepting medals from foreign countries. In 1999, the law was changed and

  • 'Only a Matter of Time' Before Saddam's Regime Is Destroyed

    DoD officials today offered no timeframe when U.S. and coalition military operations in Iraq would conclude, but they emphasized that time was running out for Saddam Hussein and his regime."There are a lot of unknowns" involved in trying to predict when Operation Iraqi Freedom would end, Pentagon

  • Maintainers unleash wave of B-52s

    More than 70 aircraft maintainers worked earnestly through the early morning March 21 to unleash the first wave of B-52 bombers on the Iraqi regime from this forward-deployed location.Later in the day they watched with the rest of the world as their "Buffs" delivered what would come to be regarded

  • Stealth fighters use new munitions to hit Baghdad

    U.S. Air Force F-117 stealth fighters struck five strategic targets in Baghdad on March 21 using a new precision-guided munition, the EGBU-27, as coalition forces shifted the Operation Iraqi Freedom air campaign into high gear.Using the low-observable, stealth technology of the F-117 to penetrate

  • Medical staff provides care during exercise

    Staff Sgt. Sonia Rincon's hands are splattered with blood and pieces of torn flesh. Her patient has a sucking chest wound and a fractured leg.Despite these gruesome injuries, Rincon takes her time tending to the wounds.She is not actually dressing the wounds, but creating them. Rincon is one of

  • April's Citizen Airman now available

    Air Force reservists are participating in immunization programs to protect them from the use of deadly biological warfare agents; Air Force Reserve Command is stepping up its efforts to increase awareness of health-care benefits; and legal officials warn reservists about the potential problems

  • Artist sketches lighter side of life

    A satellite sticking out of a mobile home and an alien wrangler riding an orbiting satellite. These are two examples of images people might see weekly when they pick up the base newspaper, The Satellite Flyer, thanks to cartoonist Staff Sgt. Mike Dodge from the 50th Space Wing's plans and programs

  • 700-plus coalition aircraft pound Iraq

    About 700 coalition aircraft flew missions against more than 100 targets in Iraq on March 20, said defense officials.The strikes flew even as planners in the area attempted to determine the results of the strikes against the Iraqi leadership the day before. Targets included command and control

  • The thunder rolls

    An A-10 Thunderbolt II assigned to the 104th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron banks to the right after takeoff from here March 20. Coalition forces in Afghanistan launched another offensive, dubbed Operation Valiant Strike, on March 20 aimed at villages and cave complexes east of Kandahar in the Sami

  • Missile on its way

    Ammunition specialists from the 379th Expeditionary Maintenance Squadron roll out an AGM-130 missile headed toward the flightline at this forward-deployed location supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom on March 21. The squadron has built more than 5,000 weapons in the past four weeks. (U.S. Air Force

  • 'Gray Eagle' awards presented to longest-serving pilots

    Just minutes after airmen deployed for Operation Iraqi Freedom began the highly anticipated "shock and awe" attack on Baghdad on March 21, Air Force leaders paused to pay tribute to two of the service's longest-serving pilots.Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Richard B. Myers and Maj. Gen.

  • Legendary group enhances defense at Fairford

    Security here has taken on a formidable new dimension.After adding layers of concertina wire, K-9s and four contingents of law enforcement, officials at this British installation have added a regiment nothing short of legendary.The Gurkhas, the world-renowned Nepali special forces contingent of the

  • Leaders tell Congress relationships key in war on terrorism

    Leaders from the Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve Command spoke to members of Congress on March 19 on the personnel issues their organizations face in fighting the global war on terrorism.Lt. Gen. Daniel James III, the director of the Air National Guard, told the Senate Armed Services

  • Rumsfeld Lists Operation Iraqi Freedom Aims, Objectives

    Defense of the American people is primary among the goals and objectives of U.S. actions in Iraq, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said during a Pentagon press conference today.Further goals are to eliminate Iraq's weapons of mass destruction and to liberate the Iraqi people.To achieve these

  • Leaders tell Congress about new aircraft, missions

    The Air Force's senior leaders presented their vision of the service's next-generation fighter and a new mission for an old warhorse to members of Congress on March 19.Secretary of the Air Force Dr. James G. Roche and Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. John P. Jumper briefed members of the House

  • Pilot dies in T-38 crash

    An instructor pilot assigned to the 100th Flying Training Squadron was killed March 19 after his T-38 Talon crash here at approximately 4 p.m.The pilot, Maj. Pete Jahns, was pronounced dead at 4:52 p.m. at Brooke Army Medical Center.The second pilot, Lt. Col. Frank Gebert, survived the crash,

  • Yokota airmen experience life at sea

    Three Yokota airmen chosen recently to experience life at sea, have returned to dry land.The trip, offered by U.S. Navy's 7th Fleet command was a program designed to give junior servicemembers in the Army and Air Force a chance to interact with sailors in similar career fields on board a Navy

  • A stealthy mission

    The first of two Air Force F-117 Nighthawks lands in the early morning hours at a forward-deployed air base on the Arabian Peninsula after a mission on March 20. Nighthawks from the 8th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron out of Holloman Air Force Base, N.M., are deployed supporting all ongoing

  • Outreach program helps critically ill infants

    Many nurses and physicians have limited experience in helping sick newborns. It can be a challenge for hospital staff to maintain skills in this area.Nurses at Wilford Hall Medical Center attended a new course March 13 designed to train them to care for critically ill infants who must be

  • Friendly fire hearing officer recommends against courts-martial

    The two Illinois Air National Guard F-16 Fighting Falcon pilots implicated in a deadly "friendly fire" incident last year should not face courts-martial, the investigating officer's report said.Majs. Harry Schmidt and William Umbach, of the 170th Fighter Squadron, face a variety of charges stemming

  • Airmen kept after school to launch rockets

    Five! Four! Three! Two! One! Blast off!This was the scream from students at Woodmen Hills Elementary on March 14 as airmen from the 1st Space Operations Squadron here helped 24 students see the rockets' red glare.For five weeks in February and March, 25 volunteers from 1st SOPS helped students

  • Power of the press

    Senior Airman Kirbie Delmo adjusts a radial drill press to align holes on manufacturing plates for an F-16 Fighting Falcon flap. Delmo is an aircraft metal technologies specialist with the 388th Equipment Maintenance Squadron. Workers in the aircraft metal technologies section manufacture, rework

  • Falcons in flight

    Between patrols of the no-fly zone in northern Iraq, F-16C Fighting Falcon aircraft fly in formation while waiting to refuel. The jets are part of Operation Northern Watch here. The F-16 in the foreground is from the Michigan Air National Guard and is flown by a pilot from the 113th Expeditionary

  • Total force showing its muscle

    The total force muscle is showing its strength throughout U.S. Air Forces in Europe as Air Force reservists and Air National Guardsmen answer the call of duty alongside their active-duty counterparts.Although the number varies daily, the Air National Guard has about 1,800 airmen and more than 60

  • Weather forecasters aid mission planning

    Asking about the weather is not a casual question in the Combined Air Operations Center at a desert airbase. In fact, it is one of the key questions asked during every phase of the air tasking order, or ATO, cycle."Most systems we have are weather sensitive, so weather predictions must be

  • Space command cancels Guardian Challenge

    Air Force Space Command officials have canceled this year's Guardian Challenge, the annual space warfighter competition held at Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif.The competition, slated for May 5 to 9, was canceled because the command needs its resources focused on day-to-day operations. The

  • Razor's edge

    Staff Sgts. Ralph Oliver (left) and Bruce Cook set up concertina wire along the perimeter here for increased force protection. They are assigned to the 424th Air Base Squadron Civil Engineer Flight. RAF Fairford is home of the 457th Expeditionary Operations Group. Troops deployed here support the

  • Good relations key to deployment success

    A contingent of deployed airmen from the 409th Air Expeditionary Group here visited a local primary school March 17 at the request of school officials.The group of visitors was made up of a flight surgeon, aircrew members, two security forces dog handlers and their canine Waldo, and others, all led

  • Airman keeps sight of American dream

    Airman 1st Class George Okorodudu admits with a wide smile that he has nothing.For the better part of two years, the Nigerian-born Okorodudu has been building his American dream with a foundation that includes an Air Force enlistment.Okorodudu is a supply airman currently deployed here from Minot

  • Post office delivers piece of home

    In a three-word phrase, Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks summarized what could make or break a good day for airmen deployed to the 386th Air Expeditionary Wing -- "You've got mail."Postal clerks of the 386th Expeditionary Communications Squadron ensure everyone assigned to the wing and its tenant units are

  • Korean exercises kick off

    Forces from all U.S. services started arriving here March 11 for the peninsula's largest exercises.Soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines gathered in Korea to work with their South Korean counterparts in the two major exercises to show how U.S. forces will help defend the country. The exercises will

  • Pilots safe after midair collision

    The pilots of two Air Force F-15 Eagles are safe following a midair collision of their aircraft March 17 about 65 miles northeast of here.One aircraft returned safely to the base while the other crashed on the Nevada Test and Training Range complex. The pilot of the second aircraft ejected and was

  • Getting adjusted

    Airman 1st Class Kenneth Maldonado adjusts the internal parts of an external fuel tank being built to support Operation Enduring Freedom. Maldonado is assigned to the 379th Expeditionary Maintenance Squadron at a forward-deployed location. (Photo by Master Sgt. Terry L. Blevins)

  • Big 'bird' is watching

    Staff Sgt. Andrew Johnson (left) and Senior Airman Nicholas Guthmiller review a maintenance checklist on a B-1 Lancer at a forwarded-deployed location in Southwest Asia. Both airmen are crew chiefs with the 28th Expeditionary Aircraft Maintenance Squadron. (Photo by Senior Airman Tia C. Schroeder)

  • Prepared in Bulgaria

    Senior Airman Karl Ferre marks lumber which will be used to construct a cross for chapel services held here. Ferre is deployed from the 100th Civil Engineer Squadron at Royal Air Force Mildenhall, England. The 409th Air Expeditionary Group here runs air refueling operations with KC-10 Extender

  • Air Force leaders explain effect of encroachment

    Two Air Force leaders testified before Congress on March 13 about the effects of environmental encroachment on the service's mission.In separate testimonies, Air Force Vice Chief of Staff Gen. Robert H. Foglesong and Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Installations, Environment and Logistics

  • Load 'em up, move 'em out

    Tech. Sgt. Benjamin Blackstone secures a vehicle onto a C-17 Globemaster III aircraft March 7. Over the last week, approximately 550 airmen and several B-52 Stratofortresses from here deployed to support of the war on terrorism. The base also sent more than 270 short tons of support equipment and

  • Vandenberg prepares for last Atlas II launch

    The last Atlas IIAS rocket scheduled to be launched arrived here March 12. A C-5 Galaxy ferried the historic booster and its Centaur upper stage from Denver, landing at the airfield here around 10:30 a.m.Lt. Col. Clinton Crosier, 2nd Space Launch Squadron commander, said the booster and upper stage

  • Incirlik supports 'unexpected guests'

    People from the 39th Services Squadron here recently transformed an old fitness center into contingency lodging now bedding down nearly 400 deployed troops. But "Motel 39" is just one small piece of the bed-down and feeding operations puzzle."I'm impressed by how quickly (civil engineers) and

  • Seal the deal

    Senior Airman Michael Campbell checks for a seal on his oxygen mask before a live-fire joint rescue exercise with a foreign national air force firefighting team March 10. Campbell is assigned to the 320th Expeditionary Civil Engineer Squadron at a forward-deployed location. The exercise was

  • WASP make weather history

    Women's roles in the military may not have started at Offutt, but the Air Force Weather Agency was here when women stepped forward to serve their country.The Air Weather Service was one of the first military agencies to use military women as pilots during World War II.In early 1943, the first

  • Eberhart briefs Congress on U.S. Northern Command

    The commander of America's newest combatant command briefed members of Congress on March 13 about the progress his unit has made since its inception less than six months ago.Gen. Ralph E. Eberhart, who took control of U.S. Northern Command when it was established Oct. 1, told members of the House

  • Man's ingenuity earns $20K

    A senior noncommissioned officer here was recently awarded two $10,000 checks for aircraft maintenance improvements through the Air Force's Innovative Development through Employee Awareness program.Master Sgt. Warren Gould of the 33rd Fighter Wing's quality assurance office suggested cutting the

  • Combined security keeps Ganci safe

    Keeping people out of harm's way and protecting resources at Ganci Air Base, Kyrgyzstan, is the job of an elite group of professionals who tote radios, weapons and ride in vehicles equipped for rugged terrain.Americans from the 376th Expeditionary Security Forces Squadron and their security forces

  • Northeast icy blast fails to chill air bridge pace

    Subzero temperatures and a dusting of 4.2 inches of snow March 7 failed to slow the Patriot Wing's support of U.S. military deployments to Southwest Asia.Between March 7 and March 11, Westover's 42nd Aerial Port Squadron handled 69 aircraft, processing 641 passengers and more than 1.1 million pounds

  • Keeping a watchful eye

    Airman 1st Class Brandon White scans the horizon for potential adversaries atop a wall in the city of Qal'eh-ye Musa Pa-in, Afghanistan, on March 12 during a special delivery to the village. White, who is deployed from Moody Air Force Base, Ga., was on the wall as part of a security detail as 20

  • Program offers electronic deployment information

    A Web-based, user-friendly software program Air Force Materiel Command experts here are testing promises warfighters instant access to deployment information. Plus, it will save the Air Force nearly $79 million during a five-year period.The Deployment Qualification System works through the Air

  • Packing a punch for combat power

    Laser and global positioning systems-guided munitions have taken a lot of the guesswork out of bombing so the accuracy and precision of putting bombs on target gets better and better.At the root of that process are weapons loaders. Since the beginning, when someone first strapped a bomb under the

  • Leaders discuss cultural renewal at Air Force Academy

    A special report by the Air Force general counsel on the recent rise in sexual assault allegations at the U.S. Air Force Academy is scheduled for release at the end of MarchBut, the service's top leaders said March 10 that they will not wait that long to initiate needed changes.Secretary of the Air

  • Three Air Force commissaries among five best

    Air Force commissaries were named "best" in three of the four categories in the Defense Commissary Agency's 2003 Best Commissary awards. Two other commissaries tied for "best" in the fourth category.Top commissaries are at:-- Tyndall Air Force Base, Fla., winner of the Bill Nichols Award for the

  • Nighthawk unit maintains the flock

    The F-117 Nighthawk may be a mystery to some, but its maintainers take pride in knowing the airframe's secret inner workings.In the 379th Expeditionary Maintenance Squadron's 8th Aircraft Maintenance Unit, a close-knit group of specialists work to keep the aircrews "putting bombs on target, on