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U.S. Air Force News

  • Behind mother’s love: Enlisting for child’s chance

    Hundreds of Airmen erupt into cheers and applause in a hangar after a name is announced. Among the crowd, a young Airman screams in disbelief. With tears of joy streaming down her face, she makes her way onto the stage to shake the commander’s hand.

  • AF invites industry for light attack platform experiment

    The Air Force released an industry invitation to participate today to evaluate the military utility of light attack platforms in future force structure.The invitation is part of a broader Air Force effort to explore cost-effective attack platform options. The live-fly experiment is an element of the

  • Historic Pacific F-35 Symposium concludes in Hawaii

    Military senior officers from nations throughout the Indo-Asia-Pacific region gathered March 14 and 15, 2017, during the first Pacific Air Forces-hosted F-35A/B Lightning II Symposium, to discuss the future of F-35 operations in the Pacific.

  • 10,000 and counting; DTC here to serve more re-deployers

    The Air Force Deployment Transition Center is continuing to push forth its mission to support the Air Force’s most valuable assets: Airmen.The deployment decompression facility, which recently marked the arrival of its 10,000th redeployer on Ramstein Air Base, Germany, aims to help Airmen coming

  • ACC welcomes new commander

    Service members of Air Combat Command welcomed their new commander during a change of command ceremony March 10, 2017.

  • CSAF letter to Airmen

    Fellow Airmen,Below you will find the final paper in my CSAF series. As with the first paper (Revitalizing Squadrons) and the second paper (Strengthening Joint Leaders and Teams), the third paper directly aligns with our strategic documents.

  • Pacific allies, partner nations to meet for first Pacific F-35 Symposium

    The F-35 Lightning II will take center stage during the Pacific Air Forces’ inaugural F-35 Symposium next week. The two-day conference will mark the largest gathering of F-35 experts to include senior officers and warfighters from Japan, Australia, South Korea as well as the U.S. Navy, Marine Corps

  • Scott hosts first jump on new drop zone

    Scott Air Force Base hosted its first airdrop on a new drop zone here March 1, 2017. Eight Airmen from Scott Air Force Base and Little Rock AFB, Arkansas, jumped from an Air National Guard C-130H Hercules assigned to the 180th Airlift Squadron in St. Joseph, Missouri. This jump provided currency and

  • Pacific mission demonstrates C-5M upgrades

    A C-5M Super Galaxy aircraft from the 22nd Airlift Squadron flew a Pacific channel mission March 4 - 5, 2017, from Travis Air Force Base, California, delivering cargo to Yokota Air Base, Japan.

  • A family within a family

    A family atmosphere has long been rooted in the 145th Airlift Wing and the Dietz family champions this statement. Senior Airman Jonathan Dietz, of the 145th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron, is the youngest son of Chief Master Sgt. Susan Dietz of the 145th Medical Group.

  • Wright: We must put Airmen, families first

    When Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force Kaleth O. Wright received the title of the Air Force’s most senior enlisted Airman less than a month ago, he instantly became responsible for advocating the best interests of more than 398,000 total force enlisted Airmen and their families.

  • Reserve mobility aircrew impacts mission in Baltic region

    The Air Force Reserve’s 433rd Airlift Wing C-5M Super Galaxy delivered 207,000 pounds of cargo comprised of three Army UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters, four Army vehicles, and 39 10th Combat Aviation Brigade Soldiers to Latvia Feb. 28 and March 3, in support of Operation Atlantic Resolve.

  • Enlisted RPA pilot board selects 30 Airmen for pilot training

    The inaugural Enlisted Remotely Piloted Aircraft Pilot Selection Board has chosen 30 enlisted Airmen to fill fiscal year 2017/2018 training slots as a part of the deliberate approach to enhance the Air Force’s Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance mission.

  • US KC-135 completes first refueling mission with Romanian F-16

    History was made when the U.S. Air Force and Romanian Air Force made their first air refueling contact Feb. 28, 2017, over Romania. With the help of the U.S. Air Force’s 100th Air Refueling Wing and one of their KC-135 Stratotankers, the Romanian Air Force became certified to refuel from all U.S.

  • C-STARS sets new DoD training standard with new simulator

    The St. Louis Center for Sustainment of Trauma and Readiness Skills is leading the way in innovative trauma training with its recent implementation of the first-ever Athena simulator to be utilized in the Defense Department. The simulator has female features and offers advanced ventilation

  • Joint medical exercise hits the beach

    The 920th Aeromedical Staging Squadron hosted the fifth annual MEDBEACH, a joint service exercise, to prepare military medical personnel for deployments by offering realistic hands-on scenarios one could encounter during combat. The exercise also provided 920th RQW reservists an opportunity to work

  • Airmen, Marines hone tactical recovery skills

    The thunderous sound of an MV-22 Osprey echoes over an open field as it lands. Emerging from its lowered door is the I Marine Expeditionary Force from Camp Pendleton, California, who advance on the New Mexican desert to fulfill their objective: find the downed aircrew and bring them home safely.

  • Supporting the fight, breaking records

    Air National Guardsmen from the 120th and 182nd Airlift Wings departed for home this week following a four-month deployment at an undisclosed location in Southwest Asia.During their deployment, the Airmen were assigned to the 386th Air Expeditionary Wing, where they successfully delivered cargo

  • US departs Aero India, leaves stronger relationships behind

    U.S. aircraft, crew and support personnel, as well as members of the State Department and other U.S. representatives returned home this week after a strong showing at Aero India 2017 at Air Force Station Yelahanka, India Feb. 20.

  • Chief shares wisdom from 36-year career

    There’s an old joke that points out the difference between knowledge and wisdom. Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit; wisdom is not putting it into a fruit salad. The same can be true regarding deployments. Knowledge may come after a few years on the job, but wisdom comes after a career full of

  • JBLE welcomes President Trump

    President Donald J. Trump greeted a crowd of service members, their families and friends as he made his first official visit to Joint Base Langley-Eustis and the Tidewater military community, March 2.

  • Disbrow delivers State of the AF

    Acting Secretary of the Air Force Lisa S. Disbrow addressed current and future issues, and talked about some of the occasions the Air Force has to look forward to in 2017 during the Air Force Association Air Warfare Symposium in Orlando, Florida, March 3.

  • Silent Sentry: Defending the final frontier

    Air, space and cyberspace - these are the three domains that the United States Air Force strives to defend. Of these domains, space has become one of the most crowded and competitive. At any given time, there are innumerable signals being transmitted to and from satellites, with each signal taking

  • 20th FW kicks off Red Flag 17-2 at Nellis

    The U.S. Air Force’s two-week premier air-to-air combat training exercise Red Flag 17-2 began Feb. 27, 2017 and will conclude March 10.Held multiple times each year on the vast bombing and gunnery ranges of the 2.9 million acre Nevada Test and Training Range, Red Flag is a realistic combat training

  • Goldfein: Multi-domain C2 is way of thinking

    Now eight months into his tenure, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David L. Goldfein provided an Air Force update during the Air Force Association Air Warfare Symposium in Orlando, Florida, March 2, 2017.

  • AF initiates plan for CSAF Focus Area No. 2

    The Air Force is moving out on its top general’s number two focus area – Strengthening Joint Leaders and Teams.In the fall of 2016, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David Goldfein announced three areas he considers foundational to the Air Force: Revitalizing Air Force squadrons, Strengthening Joint

  • Fusion warfare key to C2 future

    Despite adversaries’ attempts to imitate and interfere, the Air Force’s command and control capabilities are the best in the world, said the commander of Air Combat Command during the Air Force Association Air Warfare Symposium in Orlando, Florida, March 2.

  • Comprehensive Airman Fitness: Mental stability

    For a machine to function properly, the screws must be set, balance maintained and gaskets must be in good repair. Maybe that’s why mental instability is often characterized as having a loose screw, being out of balance or blowing a gasket. Recognized as one of the four domains of Comprehensive

  • 903rd AEF to hold 50th anniversary

    Original members of the 903rd Aeromedical Evacuation Flight will gather at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, in May, 2017, to celebrate its 50th anniversary. Established in February, 1967, the 903rd AEF was the first Air Force tactical aeromedical unit used in a combat area.

  • Goldfein’s revitalizing squadrons initiative base visits begins

    The Air Force District of Washington and Joint Base Andrews are on the leading edge of a chief of staff of the Air Force initiative that will impact the total force Air Force.The core project team tasked with overseeing a three-phase, full-time project to revitalize Air Force squadrons chose AFDW

  • AF to retire MQ-1, transition to MQ-9

    For the past 21 years, the Air Force has flown the MQ-1 Predator remotely piloted aircraft in combat, and for the last 10, the MQ-9 Reaper. Combined with a skilled aircrew, these aircraft provide consistent support in daily engagements making an impact downrange.

  • Total Force aeromedical Airmen receive new trainer

    Scott Air Force Base Airmen recently began using a new ground aeromedical evacuation (AE) fuselage trainer (FuT) here.Through coordination with Air Mobility Command, the 375th Air Mobility Wing secured a C-130H Hercules aircraft that was scheduled for decommissioning from Little Rock AFB, Arkansas

  • Goldfein speaks on the imperatives of airpower

    Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David L. Goldfein addressed the budget, people as his number one readiness priority, a networked approach to warfare in the 21st Century, and the nuclear enterprise at a Military Strategy Forum event Feb. 23, 2017, at the Center for Strategic and International Studies

  • Langley 1 of 4 bases to test bio-based grease

    The 733rd Logistics Readiness Squadron Vehicle Management Flight was chosen to participate in a 12-month long experimental testing of a new bio-based grease to lessen the base's impact on the environment.The 441st Vehicle Support Chain Operations Squadron and representatives from the Defense

  • Travis supports FEMA

    Due to historical rainfall and flooding across Northern California, Travis Air Force Base is supporting an incident management assistance team (IMAT) from the Federal Emergency Management Agency with a staging area at the base.

  • Around the Air Force: Feb. 22

    On this look around the Air Force, NASA astronauts attend water survival training at Fairchild Air Force Base, Washington and Lt. Gen. Arnold Bunch Jr. discusses how the Should Cost Program is saving the Air Force billions.

  • Robotic arm tool poised to save costly inspection time

    A common problem for aircraft maintainers may soon be a thing of the past, thanks to an Air Force Research Laboratory advanced inspection robotics research effort.AFRL researchers recently traveled to Hill Air Force Base, Utah, to demonstrate the Remote Access Nondestructive Evaluation (RANDE)

  • Alaskan Raptors arrive in Australia for training initiative

    The last wave of F-22 Raptors from the 90th Fighter Squadron at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, arrived here Feb. 14 to launch bilateral exercise and training missions with the Royal Australian Air Force and further strengthen the military relationship the two nations share.

  • QF-16 takes flight at Holloman AFB

    The QF-16 drone took its first flight at Holloman Air Force Base Feb. 10, 2017. The manned sortie was the first for the QF-16 at Holloman AFB since the retirement of the QF-4 Phantom in 2016.

  • Canadians test capabilities at Tyndall’s Combat Archer, Combat Hammer

    Royal Canadian Air Force personnel took part in exercises Combat Archer and Combat Hammer here, from Jan. 10 to Feb. 10. This was the first time the 401st Tactical Fighter Squadron deployed a detachment of personnel since fall 2015. The 401st TFS is from Cold Lake, Alberta, Canada, and brought about

  • LO technicians keep pilots undetected, alive

    F-22 Raptor and F-35A Lightning II pilots may take the reins of their respective aircraft; however, it takes preparation from outside the cockpit to get them where they need to go undetected.

  • Red Flag 17-1 pushes domain, fifth-gen integration

    As coalition pilots, intelligence analysts, and cyber and space operators convene at the Nevada Test and Training Range north of Las Vegas, for Red Flag 17-1, they have one goal in mind: work together to defeat the adversary, which at times is 20 living adversaries simultaneously working to attack

  • Fairchild pilots $4.3 billion DOD electronic health record upgrade

    The 92nd Medical Group hosted a “go-live” recognition ceremony Feb. 15, 2017, to celebrate the launch of the Defense Department’s new integrated electronic health record system, Medical Health System GENESIS. The 92nd MDG was selected as the first DOD medical clinic to launch this $4.3 billion

  • AF begins migrating email to cloud-based system in 2017

    The dreaded “your mailbox is full” message is soon to be a thing of the past under a recent directive by the Air Force Space Command to realign resources to more critical priorities and outsourcing services like email.

  • Patriot Wyvern hones Reserve wing’s readiness skills

    Airmen from the 349th Air Mobility Wing took part in a Patriot Wyvern exercise here Feb. 10 – 12. Patriot Wyvern, which takes place twice a year, brings together organizations across the unit for the common purpose of ensuring mission-ready Airmen for worldwide contingency operations. Over the

  • NASA astronauts at survival school highlights capabilities, needs

    Four NASA astronauts trained with U.S. Air Force Survival School instructors in water survival and recovery Feb. 10, at the base fitness center pool here.The astronauts underwent the training in preparation for anticipated test flights of the new commercially made American rockets, the Boeing

  • Space aggressors jam AF, allies' systems

    The 26th Space Aggressor Squadron at Schriever Air Force Base is always gearing up for the next exercise in replicating enemy action against space-based and space-enabled systems.

  • Presidential honor bestowed on AF officer

    When the President of the United States travels, stateside or abroad, there is an advance team who arrives weeks ahead to handle airport logistics. These team members, or agents, volunteer for the job and are the “best of the best” at what they do. That is why Maj. Francisco "Cisco" Leach, the 25th

  • Self-developed intelligence program strengthens coalition fight against ISIL

    As the air war against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant expands, so does the amount of data and information collected: swathes of terrain, patterns of life, historical data and real-time discovery.Adapting to the speed of war – it’s the objective placed upon the Intelligence, Surveillance

  • AMC commander: Mobility Airmen play vital role in joint operations

    The commander of Air Mobility Command presented AMC’s role in joint operations as a vital part of national security and as an example of the ‘wingman concept’ in a presentation during the AMC Headquarters staff Wingman Day event at Scott Air Force Base, Illinois, Feb. 8, 2017.

  • AFCENT Airmen fight from ultimate high ground

    As adversaries and challenges evolve in dynamic battlefields across the globe, U.S. service members from U.S. Air Forces Central Command are using cutting-edge technology to support and defend joint and coalition warfighters.

  • Deployment provides reservist teacher valuable experience for classroom

    Master Sgt. Jason Paseur, currently deployed in Southwest Asia as the 386th Air Expeditionary Wing historian, is always on the hunt for creative lessons for the classroom where he teaches as a civilian. Paseur is a reservist deployed from the 94th Airlift Wing out of Dobbins Air Reserve Base,

  • Wilson testifies on current state of the AF

    Air Force Vice Chief of Staff Gen. Stephen Wilson testified on the need for increased force structure and modernization before the House and Senate Armed Services committees Feb. 7 and 8 on Capitol Hill.

  • New course focuses on sortie production at tactical level

    The Advanced Sortie Production Course is the first advanced course specifically focusing on the art and science of sortie production at the tactical level. The new course will take place at the Air Force’s Advanced Maintenance and Munitions Operations School at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada.

  • Little Rock Airmen test first C-130J with Block 8.1 upgrades

    Airmen conducted a training flight using the first C-130J Super Hercules with a Block 8.1 upgrade at Little Rock Air Force Base Feb. 3, 2017. The Block 8.1 upgrade enhances GPS capabilities, communications systems, updated friend-or-foe identification and allows the C-130J to comply with worldwide

  • ISR, cyber coordinate capabilities for maximum effect at Red Flag

    Created in 1975, Red Flag was established by Gen. Robert J. Dixon, then commander of Tactical Air Command, to more realistically train forces for combat. This year’s first Red Flag, 17-1, at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada, has today’s Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance warriors thinking

  • 9th AF commander sets priorities

    Maj. Gen. Scott J. Zobrist assumed command of Ninth Air Force in May 2016. Since then, Zobrist visited the wings under Ninth AF, gained impressions and set his commander’s priorities.

  • Portable Manned Interactive Cockpit goes on the road

    One of 2016’s quick-kill innovation projects, the Portable Manned Interactive Cockpit, was deployed to Orlando, Florida, to participate in the Operation Blended Warrior event in December. This was the second year of a four-year event. Mark Louton, an Experimentation Center for Ideas/Technology

  • Goldfein shares space focus

    During the Mitchell Institute’s Space Power Breakfast Feb. 3 at the Capitol Hill Club, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David L. Goldfein described space as a warfighting domain, and said the Air Force is responsible for 90 percent of the Department of Defense’s space assets. The Airmen responsible for

  • Warrior exercise integrates Air Force, Marine search and rescue mission

    Exercise Coronet Warrior 17-01 was a two-day event that tested the abilities of the 4th Fighter Wing members to complete contingency operations at an overseas location in our current area of responsibility. Members of Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, North Carolina and Marine Corps Air Station New

  • Goldfein visits Vandenberg AFB

    Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David L. Goldfein, recently visited Vandenberg Air Force Base to meet with base personnel and visit a portion of the Air Force Space Enterprise, from Jan. 29-30.

  • F-35A maintenance sparks Red Flag 17-1

    The debut of the F-35A Lightning II at Red Flag has afforded the pilots and maintainers of the aircraft a chance to be a part of the Air Force's premier air-to-air combat training exercise.

  • Program office celebrates T-38C mod completion

    Technicians from the 575th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron at Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph, Texas, modified the last of 446 Air Force and 10 Navy T-38Cs with a video data transfer system (VDTS) and speed break indicator switch (SBIS) in December 2016.

  • Eye in the sky: MQ-1, MQ-9s provide increased awareness

    Situational awareness is the ability to know what is happening around a person at any given time. This is especially important for military members, more specifically, troops on the ground. For the men and women operating MQ-1B Predator and MQ-9 Reaper remotely piloted aircraft, their skills of

  • JB Charleston maintainers earn 3rd consecutive Daedalian Tophy

    C-17 Globemaster III maintainers of the 437th and 315th Maintenance Groups at Joint Base Charleston have once again demonstrated that they are the cream of the crop after earning the 2016 Clements McMullen Daedalian Trophy for the third consecutive year.

  • Pioneer of tactical airlift visits MacDill AFB

    He began his visit with a speech at U.S. Special Operations Command.“I was a part of the 492nd Bombardment Group, also known as the ‘Carpetbaggers,’ during World War II,” Cole said. “We started as an anti-submarine squadron, but instead began working with the Office of Special Services to drop

  • Red Flag evolves as ISR, cyber presence increases

    The silent warfighters of the intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance and cyber communities are honing their operational skills and testing new capabilities during Red Flag 17-1 at the Nevada Test and Training Range north of Las Vegas, Jan. 23 through Feb. 10.Red Flag is a realistic combat

  • Red Flag's heartbeat: Core unit arrives at Nellis AFB

    The 1st Fighter Wing’s aircrews and support personnel out of Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Virginia, arrived at Nellis Air Force Base Jan.17 and 18, to participate in Red Flag 17-1, as the exercise’s core unit.

  • Airmen, F-16s train in Souda Bay

    From Jan. 20-Feb. 3, the 31st Fighter Wing's 555th Fighter Squadron and Arizona Air National Guard's 161st Air Refueling Wing are participating in a flying training deployment to Souda Bay, Greece.

  • Cody visits AMC, speaks on modernization

    The chief master sergeant of the Air Force discussed Air Mobility Command’s contributions to the Air Force mission and the need to modernize the fleet during a visit to Scott Air Force Base, Illinois, Jan. 18, 2017.

  • USAFE: Yesterday, today, tomorrow

    From the creation of Eighth Air Force in 1942, to Operation Atlantic Resolve in 2017, U.S. Air Forces in Europe has answered the call to service for 75 years.USAFE’s 75th anniversary is Jan. 19, but the command will celebrate the diamond anniversary of the U.S. Air Force presence in Europe on Jan.

  • AETC’s 75th Anniversary and the birth of a professional Air Force

    On Jan. 23, 2017, Air Education and Training Command celebrated its 75th anniversary — a date much more important in our nation’s heritage than a simple mark in time. Jan. 23, 1942, proved to be the birth of a professional Air Force – men and women precisely selected and trained to fly, fight and

  • Hill AFB fighter wings bring first F-35A to Red Flag

    Pilots and maintainers from the 388th and 419th Fighter Wings deployed the F-35A Lightning II to Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada, Jan. 20, 2017 for exercise Red Flag.This is the first deployment to Red Flag for the F-35A and the first large movement since the Air Force declared the jet combat ready in

  • EC-130s maintain constant presence in Afghanistan 15 years later

    All around the dimly-lit tent are enduring symbols of a constant presence. A name scrawled across a wooden wall, a lengthy list of deployment dates written underneath, updated year after year. A library stacked with books and games to pass the time. A built-in couch labeled “Snooze Town.”

  • Air-launched cruise missile passes tests

    Air Force B-52H Stratofortress aircrews recently tested three unarmed AGM-86B air-launched cruise missiles, demonstrating the bomber force’s ability to configure, load, fly and deliver the nation’s only nuclear cruise missile.

  • AF refuelers enable B-2 strike against ISIL in Libya

    KC-135 Stratotanker and KC-10 Extender crews from five bases on three continents provided aerial refueling support during the B-2 Spirit bomber mission which struck two Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant training camps in Libya Jan. 18, 2017.

  • AF fighter jets practice for inauguration flyover

    Four Air Force fighter jets practiced for the inauguration flyover at Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Virginia, Jan. 19, 2017.Two generations of fighter aircraft are scheduled to fly in a close formation during the inauguration of President-elect Donald J. Trump at the capitol in Washington, D.C., Jan.

  • Goldfein addresses priorities for the 21st century

    Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David L. Goldfein outlined his perspective on the future of American airpower and how Airmen “deployed in place” play a vital role in today’s Air Force during his discussion at the American Enterprise Institute Public Forum in Washington, D.C., Jan. 18, 2017.

  • Air mobility squadron keeps C-17s ready for fight

    Winning the fight against an adversary requires much more than just dropping bombs on targets and taking out key leaders. It requires coordinating the precise movement of necessary supplies to arrive at the right location at the right time; which is why logistics plays such an important role in the

  • Airmen deliver aid to refugees in northern Iraq

    Reservists from the 315th Airlift Wing delivered humanitarian aid here Jan. 13 while also conducting a multifaceted training mission; the aid is bound for refugee camps in northern Iraq.