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U.S. Air Force News

  • Gen. Larry O. Spencer Innovation Award unveiled

    Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee James, along with Air Force Vice Chief of Staff Gen. Larry O. Spencer, unveiled the "Innovation Award" named in honor of Spencer during a ceremony in the Airman’s Hall at the Pentagon June 29.

  • AFSC merger ensures airborne situational awareness

    With the fiscal constraints recently seen in the Air Force, many changes have taken place to safeguard the survivability of missions and career fields. Some of those changes came in the form of career-field mergers, especially within the career enlisted aviator specialties.

  • Patriot Warrior provides realism for Reserve EOD techs

    During the Patriot Warrior exercise here, Reserve technicians from the 446th Civil Engineer Squadron EOD flight from McChord Field, Washington, recently undertook an exclusive brand of instruction to keep them on their toes in preparation for challenges they could face while serving downrange.

  • Hot maintenance

    Carrying out maintenance on Dover Air Force Base’s fleet of C-5M Super Galaxies and C-17A Globemaster IIIs can be challenging at times, but extreme heat and humidity can add additional challenges during the summer months.

  • Enhanced e-learning for cyber Airmen

    Air Force cyber Airman training takes a giant leap forward with the latest enhancement to AF e-Learning. The upgrade allows Air Force supervisors and trainers to facilitate better skill-level upgrade and on-the-job training with customizable learning programs that can be updated on the fly to remain

  • GPS: A generation of service to the world

    Nearly 40 years ago, the Air Force launched the first GPS satellite, dubbed Navstar. But even the most visionary of those people involved with the first launch probably couldn’t have guessed how much GPS would eventually impact the world.

  • AFSOUTH Airmen visit orphans, deliver gifts to those in need

    Up a winding mountain road through the mountains of Honduras, about an hour outside the city of Tegucigalpa, is the town of Casa de Corderitos, a small community of orphaned and neglected children. This is where Airmen from 12th Air Force (Air Forces Southern) decided to spend some of their downtime

  • AFSOUTH paves way to increase capabilities in Honduras

    A five-member assessment team from 12th Air Force (Air Forces Southern) at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona, and the 571st Mobility Support Advisory Squadron at Travis AFB, California, traveled to Honduras June 15-19 to perform a three-day capabilities assessment at several Honduran air bases

  • USAF Weapons School JTAC graduates to receive hallowed patches

    When the first five graduates of the U.S. Air Force Weapons School’s Joint Terminal Attack Controller Weapons Instructor Course receive their diplomas during the school’s class 15-A graduation June 27, they will also be awarded the coveted graduate patch of the USAFWS and enter into an elite group

  • Service star authorized on GWOT Expeditionary Medal

    Active-duty, Guard and Reserve Airmen who earned the Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal for more than one of the five Defense Department approved Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal operations may now wear a service star device on the medal and service ribbon for the second and

  • Living the American Dream

    Senior Airman Vadim Poleanschi, a 386th Expeditionary Logistic Readiness Squadron logistics specialist, felt the burden, whether he understood it or not. Poleanschi was born after the Soviet Union fell apart in a country called the Republic of Moldova, an Eastern European country landlocked between

  • DOD launches Integrated Lodging Program Pilot

    The Defense Department will launch an Integrated Lodging Program Pilot June 15, which will provide quality government and commercial lodging, with greater safety and security and better services at reduced rates.

  • Lt. Gen. Hesterman III: ISIL fears coalition airpower

    “We know from our intelligence that (ISIL) fears coalition airpower,” said Lt. Gen. John Hesterman III, the Combined Forces Air Component commander. “Since Aug. 8, coalition airpower has significantly degraded (ISIL’s) ability to organize, project and sustain combat power while taking exceptional

  • SBIRS awards technical refresh modification

    The Space and Missile Systems Center (SMC) recently completed negotiations on the Lockheed Martin Space Systems’ Space Based Infrared System (SBIRS) Technical Refresh proposal and awarded the contract modification June 9.

  • 15 nations assemble to improve force development

    U.S. Air Forces in Europe and Air Forces Africa hosted 14 allied and partner nations June 2-4, for the inaugural International Professional Military Development (PMD) Symposium in Ramstein Air Base, Germany.

  • Tech Report: E-3 Sentry (AWACS)

    The E-3 Sentry (AWACS) is a modified Boeing 707 commercial airframe with a rotating radar dome and serves as an integrated command and control battle management, surveillance, target detection, and tracking platform.

  • June issue of Airman magazine now available

    The June issue of Airman magazine is now available to download on your tablet or can be viewed through a web browser. The front cover story focuses on a special unit of security forces Airmen and their partners -- quarter horses. Together, the Airmen and their horses patrol the beaches along

  • Silent Sentry meets a decade of interstellar combat support

    Operation Silent Sentry was part of a proof of concept system in 2005. Back then, several Airmen were deployed to Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar, for 120 days. The mission was to test the capabilities of a new defensive counter-space system in support of joint warfighters in the area of responsibility and

  • Commercial Integration Cell pilot program underway

    U.S. Strategic Command's Joint Functional Component Command for Space (JFCC Space) initiated a six-month pilot program incorporating commercial operators into its Joint Space Operations Center, here, June 1.

  • Eagle Eyes vital to spotting danger

    The Air Force Office of Special Investigation administers an Air Force-wide program called Eagle Eyes. It's an anti-terrorism initiative that teaches individuals how to identify and report possible terrorist activity. The program provides a 24-hour hotline, allowing information to be reported as

  • Surviving 'face-breaking' speed

    For some it's about competition, for others it's an adrenaline rush, but for Derek Hamby, bicycling is about passion. Hamby, an avid bicyclist and manpower and organization chief at Schriever Air Force Base, Colorado, has been riding for close to 20 years. He takes trips with friends each year, just

  • Airman, wife help people in Philippine villages

    Every January for the past five years, Master Sgt. Cesar Jurilla, of the California Air National Guard’s 163rd Reconnaissance Wing, travels to these remote locations with his wife, Cora, as part of a team of doctors, nurses and nonmedical assistants who volunteer with the Filipino ministry of

  • SecAF to cadets: ‘Lead Us Into The Future’

    Cadets graduating from the U.S. Air Force Academy as second lieutenants are entering the profession of arms at a time of unprecedented change and challenges, said Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee James to the Class of 2015 May 28, in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

  • Tech Report: GPS

    The Global Positioning System is a constellation of orbiting satellites that provides navigation data to military and civilian users all over the world. The system is operated and controlled by the 50th Space Wing, located at Schriever Air Force Base, Colorado.

  • Kazakhstan native selected for officer training

    Senior Airman Aigerim Akhmetova, a C-17 Globemaster III supply clerk from the 8th Expeditionary Air Mobility Squadron at Al Udied Air Base, Qatar, said she remembers waking up early to stand in line with her mother for loaves of bread while growing up in Kazakhstan when it was a Soviet republic.

  • AF assigns new chief scientist

    The Air Force announced the service’s new chief scientist to serve as a science and technology advisor to the secretary of the Air Force and the chief of staff of the Air Force, May 21. Dr. Greg Zacharias will be the 35th chief scientist and is ready to “dive in” to his new role.

  • AF successfully launches the AFSPC-5 mission

    The Air Force and its mission partners successfully launched the AFSPC-5 mission aboard the Space and Missile Systems Center (SMC) procured United Launch Alliance Atlas V launch vehicle at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida, May 20, at 11:05 a.m. EST. There were no issues reported with the

  • Summer safety begins with risk management

    Increased travel and leisure activities go hand in hand with the summer months, and require increased emphasis on risk management, said Bill Parsons, the Air Force chief of ground safety

  • Barksdale B-52s participates in CENTCOM exercise Eager Lion

    Two B-52 Stratofortress bombers assigned to the 2nd Bomb Wing in Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana, returned May 18, from a 30-plus hour, 14,000 mile nonstop mission to the U.S. Central Command area of operations, where they participated alongside Jordanian and other multinational forces in

  • AF chief scientist visits AFRL, receives service honor

    Dr. Mica Endsley, the chief scientist of the Air Force, met with Air Force Research Laboratory leaders at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, May 5-7, reviewing key Air Force science and technology programs, and attending a preview of the technology displays AFRL will feature at the Department of

  • Staying safe on two wheels

    With the worst of winter behind us, many folks are beginning to break out the hiking boots and sunscreen for some outdoor fun. Additionally, many motorcyclists who have been bound by snow and ice for the last several months are making their way onto the roads again. Lt. Col. Mark Guerber, the 16th

  • Airman returns home to Nepal after earthquake

    When Senior Airman Manoj Khatiwada was asked to join a team of Pacific Air Forces Airmen traveling to Nepal to assist the government with relief operations following a magnitude 7.8 earthquake, he was filled with mixed emotions. Khatiwada was born and raised in Nepal and came to the U.S. in 2009

  • True Warrior: An Airman's fight

    The distant roar of hundreds of people hungry for action pulses through the compound, rumbling the stone walls of a dimly lit waiting room.Shoulders hunched, Tech. Sgt. Clinton Williams, a 52nd Component Maintenance Squadron engine manager and mixed martial artist, walks down a hallway, wearing a

  • Sergeant helps others in India

    Staff Sgt. Alexander Cedillo, a 60th Logistics Readiness Squadron day-shift supervisor at Travis Air Force Base, California, recently visited Kolkata, India, where he found peace and answered a calling. In February, he used 30 days of leave to volunteer at a hospice house and a home for the mentally

  • Mildenhall CDC best in Air Force

    The Royal Air Force Mildenhall Child Development Center was awarded the Air Force's best Child Development Program of the Year for 2014. Competing against 84 other CDCs across the Air Force was no small challenge, and it took an above-and-beyond effort of the whole team.

  • Vandenberg receives conservation award

    Vandenberg Air Force Base recently received the 2015 Military Conservation Partner Award for excellence and exceptional leadership in natural resource conservation, May 4.

  • AFSAS home page redesign helps to streamline layout and navigation

    The Air Force Safety Automated System (AFSAS) home page was recently updated, providing more capabilities to safety professionals and leadership and giving them the ability to identify trends and to produce analyses that lead to recommendations and mishap prevention.

  • Ramstein awarded $250,000 for innovation

    Gen. Frank Gorenc, the U.S. Air Forces in Europe and Air Forces Africa commander, presented the 86th Airlift Wing here a $250,000 check and the Lt. Gen. William H. Tunner Trophy May 1, for winning the USAFE-AFAFRICA Innovation Madness tournament.

  • Taking care of people for mission’s sake

    Military members are often told the mission comes first, but for Jane-Marie Kopycinski, military members and their families are the mission -- and some might argue the most critical component of the force.

  • DOD Lab Day to showcase groundbreaking technologies

    The Air Force Research Laboratory will have a unique opportunity to showcase some of its groundbreaking technologies at the first ever Department of Defense Lab Day to be held at the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., May 14.

  • Emerald Warrior-15 a complete success

    More than 2,100 members participated in Emerald Warrior, an annual Air Force Special Operations Command two-week joint service, interagency and partner nation exercise that concluded here May 1.

  • Military child to AF leader

    From his cradle in a small village in western Germany to the position of the 81st Training Wing commander, Brig. Gen. Patrick Higby has learned the value of being a military child and the resources available to others who have grown up in the military life.

  • Air Force focuses on assured access to space

    Ending America’s reliance on the Russian-built RD-180 rocket engine was the primary topic of conversation during a hearing with the Senate Armed Services Committee, Subcommittee on Strategic Forces, April 29.

  • Supplements: Awareness is a serious matter

    Health, fitness and energy are important considerations for all Airmen, but when does pursuing them result in potential and real problems Supplements, health foods and energy drinks may be popular and even come with approval from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, but that doesn't ensure compliance

  • AF will defend, boost space assets

    Space is absolutely vital to the American way of life and it is also vital to the protection of the nation, the commander of Air Force Space Command told the Defense Writers’ Group here April 28.

  • A day in the life of a dental lab technician

    Dentures, crowns and night guards are just some of the unusual products made at the Peterson Area Dental Lab for personnel worldwide. Senior Airman Jonathon Stambaugh has been a lab technician for the ADL for more than two years, working on crowns along with other projects. He also trains and

  • Buckley EO earns AF-level recognition

    The 460th Space Wing Equal Opportunity Office was awarded the Colonel L. Joseph Brown Award - Equal Opportunity Program as part of the 2014 Manpower Personnel and Service Annual Awards Program.

  • Jumping into history

    Prior to the launch of the Allied invasion of Normandy, the remarks made by Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower, the Supreme Allied Commander, to this day, still carry weight for one of the Soldiers he was addressing.

  • AFSPC commander discusses priorities at symposium

    Gen. John E. Hyten, the commander of Air Force Space Command, identified several key actions to be taken to ensure U.S. strength in space for the future during the 2015 Space Symposium April 14.

  • General’s mentorship leads 2nd Lt. back to AF

    Second Lt. Matthew Ruden didn't always plan to stay in the Air Force, but he plans to stay now. Ruden, an acquisitions manager for the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center's F-15 Eagle Division, will be promoted to first Lieutenant on May 1. Maj. Gen. Tom Masiello, the Air Force Research

  • Periodic inspection: Just what the ‘tanker doc’ ordered

    For more than 40 years, KC-135 Stratotankers have been flying over the sunflower state, and just like any other crew member, they need their "check-ups" too. Keeping the 60-year-old planes up-to-date and safe to fly takes more than a simple check-up; it takes a team of tanker "docs" ensuring each

  • SecAF delivers message of confidence

    Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee James spoke to an audience of military and commercial space professionals, and space enthusiasts at the 31st Annual Space Symposium here, adding to an already familiar message.

  • US Cyber Command chief discusses importance of operations

    Cyber is an operational domain, and military leaders are going to have to understand its importance and the opportunities and challenges of operating in the domain, said Navy Adm. Michael S. Rogers during the Navy League’s 50th annual Sea-Air-Space Exposition at the National Harbor, Maryland, April

  • 45th Space Wing supports 6th SpaceX re-supply mission

    The 45th Space Wing supported Space Exploration Technologies' (SpaceX) successful launch of their Falcon 9 Dragon spacecraft headed to the International Space Station from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida, April 14.

  • Kisling NCO Academy recognized as best of best

    The U.S. Air Forces in Europe's Kisling NCO Academy was named the 2014 U.S. Air Force Professional Military Education Team of the Year. This is the fifth time in the past six years they have been recognized for their accomplishments in the development of NATO NCOs.

  • Foreign officer shares rewards of Academy exchange

    In 2001, Japan Air Self-Defense Force Maj. Kazuto Ueda, then a cadet at Japan's National Defense Academy (NDA), visited the U.S. Air Force Academy for a week. Never in his wildest dreams did he think he'd return here 12 years later to teach Japanese history, military and culture to American cadets.

  • Darkest before dawn

    He can’t recall the details of that fateful afternoon, but Phillip Sisneros, known by most as just “Phil,” was riding his motorcycle in Las Vegas, on his way home from celebrating a coworker’s promotion the night before -- when his life was turned upside down.

  • SECDEF honors military children at Yokota AB

    In Japan, the secretary held a military family town hall at Yokota Air Base to celebrate April as the Month of the Military Child, established in 1986 by then-Defense Secretary Caspar Weinberger.

  • CSAF describes Air Force of the future

    In the future, the Air Force’s core missions will probably not change, but the way they are carried out will, said Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark A. Welsh III on April 8.

  • Space warning squadron keeps watch at 'top of the world'

    Located at the “top of the world,” the 12th Space Warning Squadron's location offers a unique and strategic vantage point in the execution of its missile warning and defense, and space surveillance missions in support of U. S. Strategic Command.

  • Missile testing unit validates strategic deterrent

    The 576th Flight Test Squadron, which conducts Minuteman III launches from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, holds the unique distinction as the sole intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) test unit in the Department of Defense.

  • Child’s dream turned pilot’s reality

    Since he was a child, Capt. Kenneth Jubb has chased a dream to one day fly, and now as a pilot he relives his childhood fantasy every time he takes to the air.

  • Piecing together the bigger picture

    Airmen with the Expeditionary Air Control Squadron (EACS), also known as “Kingpin,” provide the information needed for completion of the Air Tasking Order, a 24-hour planning document that assigns specific aircraft to specific missions.

  • Keeping our military safe on social media

    Social media. It incorporates several platforms that allow military members to stay in touch with friends and loved ones around the world, however, sometimes what is shared comes with a hefty price tag; loss of operational security.

  • Future of combat aviation requires funding

    Senior leaders from the Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps testified on the future programs and platforms of combat aviation forces, and budget needs, in a hearing with the House Armed Services Committee March 27.

  • 9th-generation GPS satellite blasts off from 'The Cape'

    The 45th Space Wing supported the successful launch of a United Launch Alliance (ULA) Delta IV rocket carrying the Air Force's ninth Block IIF-9 navigation satellite for the GPS March 25, 2015, from Launch Complex 37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla.

  • U.S. air advisors reach milestone with Colombian air force

    Members of the 571st Mobility Support Advisory Squadron (MSAS), from Travis Air Force Base, finalized their training with members of the Colombian air force while observing their performance of an airdrop mission near Bogota, Colombia, March 4, 2015.

  • Black Flag first responders train with tunnel vision

    Cold and dimly lit walls surround Airmen dressed in crinkling, sweaty plastic suits to protect against unknown hazards. Firefighters, paramedics, emergency responders, bioenvironmental engineers and police forces share the former highway tunnel year-round for numerous crisis situation exercises.

  • AF releases results of Space Launch Process review

    The Air Force announced March 23, that the phase one results of the independent review panel tasked by Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee James to review the process for certifying SpaceX as an Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV) provider.

  • Joint communication training creates realistic scenarios, cost savings

    “Train like we fight” and “Do more with less” are mottos echoing the walls of countless Defense Department and Air Force conference rooms daily; and for good reason. U.S. military missions continue to expand while concurrently trying to balance shrinking budgets and decreasing personnel.

  • Space planning essential to battle success

    "Space, the final frontier," can mean a lot to people in different careers, but is the vast blackness filled with mesmerizing intergalactic-lights important to today's warfighter?According to Capt. Jamil Brown, the 607th Air Operations Center chief of space plans, space is a newer concept to

  • AF announces 23 AFSCs on reenlistment bonus list

    Enlisted Airmen in 23 Air Force specialty codes may be eligible to receive a selective reenlistment bonus (SRB) effective March 12, Air Force officials announced March 12.The Air Force is moving forward with a higher end-strength, so AFSCs eligible for the SRB program will increase to address

  • AF Assistance Fund supports Dover Airman during tragedy

    Tragedy rarely strikes on a schedule. It doesn't wait for a convenient time, often turning a person's life upside down.Tragedy struck for Tech. Sgt. Shamika Beckley, a 436th Operations Support Squadron NCO in charge of unit intelligence, when her sister Raquel Calleja was killed by a drunk driver on

  • SecAF to host tweet chat March 18

    Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee James will hold her second tweet chat at 1:30 p.m. EDT, March 18, addressing issues currently on the mind of Airmen.

  • Airman helps strengthen bond between US, China

    An Airman assigned to the 15th Operations Support Squadron here, is tapping into a unique set of skills to support the U.S. Pacific Command's priority of strengthening its foreign partnerships. Capt. Joshua Hu, a 15th OSS executive officer, speaks Mandarin Chinese and has used his ability to

  • US, South Korean air forces sharpen cyberspace defense

    Attacks, counter-attacks, bombs, rescues, evacuations and logistics are all elements of conflict. For the participants of Key Resolve 2015, these actions and other important elements of combat come through a buzzing hard drive rather than from a physical foe.