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  • Motivated by education, opportunity: Airman finds second home with AF

    Many words are used to describe the United States; some call it the land of plenty, freedom or equality, but at least one Airman regards it as the land of opportunity.Airman 1st Class Bin Ma, a 20th Comptroller Squadron financial services technician, departed Wuhan, China, in 2008 to start his

  • Undergrad flying training applications due in November

    The 2016 Air Force Undergraduate Flying Training selection board will convene Jan. 25-28 to select applicants for 2016-2017 pilot, remotely piloted aircraft, combat systems officer and air battle manager training opportunities.

  • RPAs prove vital in fight against ISIL

    From August 2014 to August 2015, the 432nd Wing has directly supported Operation Inherent Resolve, a U.S. Central Command and partner nation's campaign to conduct targeted airstrikes in Iraq and Syria as part of the comprehensive strategy to degrade and defeat the Islamic State of Iraq and the

  • 9th CMSAF laid to rest

    “If you've met Chief Binnicker, you've met an icon -- a hero, a legend," said Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force, James A. Cody. Cody said these words as he delivered the eulogy for former Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force James C. Binnicker at the Fort Meyer post chapel in Arlington, Virginia,

  • SecAF gains perspective of Beale's ISR mission

    Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee James visited Beale Air Force Base to get an up-close view of the high-altitude intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance mission Aug. 10-12.

  • Kenya native makes best of AF opportunities

    Staff Sgt. Johnson Njenga was born and raised in Kenya and hasn't seen his immediate family in two years. For a family as close-knit as his, this can be heartbreaking, but the opportunities the U.S. provides and his love for the Air Force keep him here, serving as the 21st Medical Squadron Family

  • Can’t spell test without TES

    More than 60 Air Mobility Command Test and Evaluation Squadron Airmen and civilians -- many of whom are former pilots and maintainers -- use their aircrew backgrounds to update and advance aircraft components in safe and innovative ways.

  • CSAF listens to Airmen, discusses nuclear enterprise mission

    Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark A Welsh III visited three Air Force Global Strike Command bases to listen to Airmen of all ranks who support the Global Strike mission on a daily basis, while addressing the importance of the nuclear enterprise and its future.

  • New chief of Air Force Safety takes command

    Maj. Gen. Andrew M. Mueller assumed the duties of Air Force chief of safety, Headquarters Air Force, in Washington, D.C., July 24. In that capacity, he also serves as the commander of the Air Force Safety Center at Kirtland Air Force Base.

  • AF funds development of high-performance munitions technology

    The Air Force Small Business Innovation Research/Small Business Technology Transfer program office recently provided nearly $400,000 of additional funding for a SBIR effort that will give the warfighter an affordable, high-performance millimeter wave seeker technology for high-performance munitions.

  • Colorado AF reservists fighting California fires from the sky

    Two Modular Airborne Fire Fighting System-equipped aircraft arrived at McClellan Air Tanker Base in Sacramento, California, from the Air Force Reserve Command's 302nd Airlift Wing at Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado, Aug. 3, to assist in fighting the Rocky Fire northwest of Sacramento, California,

  • AF Global Strike Command establishes school for its best, brightest

    The Cold War ended in 1991, and with it, a comprehensive knowledge of the nation's deterrence capability. The link between strategic deterrence and technical competence faded away, with Airmen often gaining expertise in other areas, according to Air Force Global Strike Command staff. This shortage

  • Jamming the enemy with joint integration

    Leaving the flight deck of the EA-6B Prowler behind for a few years, Marine Corps Capt. Jonathon Leach from Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, North Carolina, joins the Desert Lightning Team.

  • Eye in the sky, RPA Airmen in the Red Flag fight

    The sun beats down on the dry Nevada desert, bringing a smell of fuel that fills the air. Engines begin roaring to life as the Airmen of the 432nd Wing prepare to support Red Flag 15-3 from July 13-31.

  • Cognitive computers primed to change the Air Force acquisition landscape

    Cognitive thinking machines that can critically analyze and process information accurately and at a rate faster than human capability are the type of meta-advance technologies that Sci-Fi fanatics dream of, and the Air Force is seeking to leverage this innovative technology in the world of

  • Senior master sergeant evaluations to be on new EPR form

    Senior master sergeant enlisted performance reports, which closed out July 31, will be accomplished on the newly published Air Force Form 911, the EPR for master sergeant through senior master sergeant, which was made available July 31 on the e-Publishing website.

  • Spencer reflects on 44-year career

    In the early 1970s, America was at a crossroads. The Vietnam War raged on, seemingly with no end in sight, and many Americans felt forced to choose to either support the administration or protest the conflict, which left many families across the nation bitterly divided.

  • Roll Call: 'This is your Air Force'

    The Air Force senior enlisted Airman released the latest installment of Roll Call, urging Airmen to follow the example of the ninth Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force James Binnicker, who passed away March 21. Binnicker will be laid to rest Aug. 14 at Arlington National Cemetery, Virginia.

  • Dover Airmen survive land, water training

    There are only two survival, evasion, resistance and escape specialists assigned to the 436th Operations Support Squadron at Dover Air Force Base, Delaware, but they are responsible for providing survival training to more than 1,000 aircrew members, including aircrews from the Air National Guard

  • TRICARE Online and MiCare have similarities, differences

    TRICARE Online and MiCare Secure Messaging may seem to offer the same services, but there are important differences to these software tools, which are designed to enhance access to care for all military beneficiaries.

  • New interrogation system installed on AWACS, more in pipeline

    The E-3 Sentry AWACS Next Generation Identification Friend or Foe (NGIFF) program office from Hanscom Air Force Base, Massachusetts, recently completed the first installation of the new AN/UPX-40 system, which also brings new enhancements onto an operational AWACS at Tinker AFB, Oklahoma.

  • Going the distance

    Chief Master Sgt. Geoff Weimer, the 5th Bomb Wing command chief, ran 52 miles on the McAdoo Sports and Fitness Center outdoor track at Minot Air Force Base, July 24, to support the Air Force Enlisted Village and Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force Scholarship Fund.

  • Exercise tests, demonstrates new DOD capabilities

    As a C-17 Globemaster III flown by the Air National Guard slowly made its way down the Offutt Air Force Base flightline July 23, ambulances from the Omaha Fire and Rescue Department along with other local emergency response vehicles waited just outside an aircraft parking ramp.This was all part of

  • Through the glass: Vet looks back

    The heritage center at Travis Air Force Base has many pieces of military, history rich with old war stories. One piece, a bullet-riddled B-24 Liberator windshield, tells the story of a man from a small town who went on to fight in World War II and gave more than 40 years of service to his country.

  • AF Academy joins in nationwide concussion study

    Hundreds of basic cadets lined up at the U.S. Air Force Academy July 13 to help experts learn more about head trauma. Cadets are taking part in a three-year, $30 million collaboration between the Defense Department and the NCAA to study concussions. Eighteen universities in the U.S. and the military

  • Seventh WGS satellite launch successful after weather delay

    Twenty-five dedicated Space and Missile Systems Center personnel put off their mad dash to jam the streets of Los Angeles, and instead, gathered in the Gordon Conference Center at the Schriever Space Complex, California, on July 23. These active-duty and civilian employees observed the culmination

  • Ground testing for F-35 gun conducted at Edwards AFB

    The F-35 Joint Strike Fighter Integrated Test Force is in the process of testing the F-35A Lightning II’s newest munitions asset, a four-barrel Gatling gun that fires 25 mm rounds known as the GAU-22/A.

  • CHIEFchat: Cody addresses new EPR form, Course 15

    Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force James A. Cody addressed several topics during his latest CHIEFchat, including the new enlisted performance report and Course 15, at the Defense Media Activity on Fort George G. Meade, Maryland.

  • AF continues to work with DOD, OPM on cybersecurity incident

    The Air Force maintains its commitment to protect personal information from cyber threats by continuing efforts with the Defense Department and the Office of Personnel Management to assist those impacted by the recent cyber incident involving federal background investigation data.

  • Marking 20 years of GPS

    The Air Force celebrated the Global Positioning System 20th anniversary during a ceremony at the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum in Washington D.C., July 17.

  • Optimism helped Vietnam vet survive as POW

    When 2nd Lt. John "Spike" Nasmyth climbed into his F-4 Phantom II on Sept. 4, 1966, to fly a combat mission over Vietnam, he never foresaw that he'd be blown out of the sky by a surface-to-air missile.The last words he heard before his jet was transformed into a lump of crumpled, metal wreckage were

  • Snipers hone skills during Royal Air Force training

    As his mind wandered to his hunger and lack of sleep, the sniper turned his thoughts back to the mission at hand. Staff Sgt. Joseph Crotty, the 822d Base Defense Squadron NCO in charge of standards and evaluations, would have to stay focused to get through this training.

  • Human performance team helps RPA Airmen combat stress

    As the persistent demand for remotely piloted aircraft support increases, the burden on the Airmen who fly, maintain and support these operations also increases, often leaving some people to question their abilities to continue in this stressful job.

  • 3rd largest wideband enterprise terminal upgrade in progress

    A key system that helps ensure the global free flow of information throughout all military branches and other government agencies is undergoing a major overhaul. Led by a team at Hanscom Air Force Base, the Air Force Wideband Enterprise Terminal system is receiving its third largest upgrade to date,

  • AF releases first-term Airman retraining quotas

    Eligible first-term enlisted Airmen interested in retraining opportunities can review the fiscal year 2016 online retraining advisory on myPers. Air Force officials approved 1,599 fiscal 2016 first-term Airman retraining quotas in 45 Air Force specialty codes.

  • Zelda's tower

    For 35 years, Zelda Montoya has stood in her tower, overlooking flightlines around the world and guiding aircraft to and from home. To her, the sky is not made up of fleecy clouds and endless expanses of blue, but rather lines, grids and waypoints.

  • Munitions systems specialists arm the 'ultimate battle plane'

    Without the munitions systems specialists of the 1st Special Operations Equipment Maintenance Squadron, the AC-130U Spooky would have difficulty completing its close air support mission, to include supporting troops in contact, convoy escort and single point air defense.

  • GPS IIF-10 successfully launched from Cape Canaveral

    The Air Force and its mission partners successfully launched the tenth Boeing-built Global Positioning System IIF satellite aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V launch vehicle from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida, at 11:36 a.m. EDT.

  • OPM acts to protect federal workers, others from cyber threats

    U.S. Office of Personnel Management officials announced July 9, the results of the interagency forensics investigation into a recent cyber incident involving federal background investigation data and the steps OPM is taking to protect those affected.

  • Harrigian cites sustainment center’s F-35 support

    The head of the Air Force's F-35 Lightning II integration team cited the Air Force Sustainment Center's overall joint strike fighter support during a visit to the center’s headquarters at Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma, July 10.

  • AF releases SSIP results to DOD contractors

    Today, the Department of the Air Force announced its top performing industry partners for 2015. This is the second annual ranking released as part of the Defense Department's Superior Supplier Incentive Program.

  • Drilling activity for Honduras water well underway

    The 823rd Expeditionary RED HORSE Squadron continued drilling activity for a water well July 7 in Honduras. The well is one of multiple projects taking place here as part of New Horizons, an annual humanitarian assistance exercise.

  • Dr. Chief inspires Airmen toward higher education

    For Chief Master Sgt. Marvin Parker, being a leader meant more than simply checking the minimum requirements. Since 2014, the 36th Mission Support Group superintendent has held a doctorate in business administration, summa cum laude, specializing in global operations of supply chain management --

  • Master sergeant promotion results slated for July 16 release

    The Air Force selected 5,301 technical sergeants out of 23,619 eligible for promotion to master sergeant, Air Force Personnel Center officials announced. The selection list will be posted July 16, at 8 a.m. CDT on the myPers enlisted promotion page. Individual score notices will be available in

  • CMSAF visits Kadena

    Airmen were not short on questions during Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force James A. Cody's visit to Kadena Air Base July 5-8.

  • Blast from the past: Last M117 bomb dropped near Guam coast

    Airmen from the 20th Expeditionary Bomb Squadron -- with the help of 36th Munitions Squadron Airmen -- dropped the final M117 air-dropped general purpose bomb in the Pacific Air Force's inventory June 26 on an uninhabited island off the coast of Guam.

  • Latest issue of Airman magazine now available

    In this issue of Airman magazine, you’ll meet Airmen who are assigned to Creech Air Force Base, Nevada, who have a vastly different deployment experience than most others in the Air Force, where they operate from Creech AFB and come home to their families at the end of their shift. They’re

  • Western Hemisphere air chiefs work together at annual conference

    United-Allied -- this is the motto of the System of Cooperation Among the American Air Forces, an organization comprised of more than 20 air force leaders from across the Western Hemisphere, who met June 22-26 in Mexico City for a summit known as the Conference of American Air Chiefs.

  • 5,000 days of war

    It’s been 5,000 days of struggle, rugged landscapes, blood and sweat. It’s been 5,000 days of exhaustion, injuries, and long separations from family, friends and home. On June 27, the 17th Special Tactics Squadron marked 5,000 days of unremitting war.

  • Upgraded AWACS platform tested at Northern Edge

    Calmly soaring at 30,000 feet in the midst of nearly 100 fighters, bombers and refueling tankers executing a battle scenario, an E-3G Sentry (AWACS) surveys every aircraft in a 300-mile radius, calling out commands, verifying target hits and sending aircraft back home safely.

  • 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.

  • Air Force intel pros use Web-based remotely piloted aircraft application

    Using existing technology, a team of Air Force intelligence experts have developed a new Web-based program that saves lives and money. These innovators will receive the U.S. Geospatial Intelligence Foundation Achievement Award for developing the Surveillance Intelligence Reconnaissance Information

  • Cody reaches out to USAFE-AFAFRICA Airmen

    Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force James A. Cody wrapped up his second visit to U.S. Air Forces in Europe-U.S. Air Forces Africa this year, tackling Airmen's questions surrounding changes to the new enlisted evaluation system, promotions, formal training and retirements.

  • Balancing career, family through career intermission program

    Being in the U.S. military can be a tough balance between career and family. For some, it comes down to a choice between the two; however, for Katie Evans, a temporarily separated captain and the former 18th Force Support Squadron manpower and personnel flight commander here, it's about keeping

  • OPM computer attack highlights bigger issue

    The attack on the Office of Personnel Management’s computer system illuminates a larger issue of deterrence, said the Director of National Intelligence James R. Clapper June 25.

  • CAC change aids visually color impaired security officers

    The Defense Department’s Common Access Card is undergoing modification to make it easier for visually color-impaired security officials to identify bearers who are military, government or contractor civilians, or foreign nationals, a Defense Human Resources Activity official said recently.

  • 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.

  • Tech Report: Dropsonde

    The Hurricane Hunters of the 53rd Weather Reconnaissance Squadron use a cool piece of tech called a “dropsonde” to help forecast hurricanes and other tropical storms.

  • AFRL bio-signature research may save firefighters' lives

    Imagine facing down a raging fire, up close, with little or no time to save lives and protect property; hauling 75-pound hoses up multiple flights of stairs; carrying victims out and repeatedly putting your life on the line. Then imagine doing it nearly every day. It’s an extreme job and the

  • 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

  • AF begins enlisted professional military education enrollment notifications

    Last week, the Air Force Personnel Center initiated a phased approach to notify approximately 83,000 Airmen of the requirement to enroll in the applicable enlisted professional military education distance learning course. AFPC will notify 20,000 Airmen at the beginning of each month until all

  • Cody visits Incirlik Airmen

    Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force James A. Cody visited Airmen and answered questions concerning the future of the force, focus changes and important issues June 17-18, at Incirlik Air Base, Turkey.

  • Airman improves intelligence career field through innovations

    Tech. Sgt. Kevin from Creech Air Force Base, Neveda, has been an innovator for the intelligence career field with for the past decade. One of his creations, called the Squadron Intelligence Reconnaissance Interface, codenamed SIRI, is an application used by remotely piloted aircraft crew members to

  • New acquisition process awards contracts in weeks

    A new government open architecture acquisition process that can award contracts in weeks instead of years was tested at Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Virginia, June 8-11. The process, called PlugFest, is an interactive industry event where companies get to “plug-in” to a given open system architecture

  • Cody visits Ramstein, addresses Airmen's concerns

    Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force James A. Cody met with Airmen and addressed their concerns regarding the future of the Air Force during an all at Ramstein Air Base, Germany, here June 15.