NATO Air Policing operations

U.S. Air Force News

  • AMC relocates KC-135 simulator

    As Air Mobility Command fields the KC-46A Pegasus, displaced KC-135 Stratotanker pilot simulators will be relocated across the Total Force to maximize simulator access across the mobility enterprise.

  • RED HORSE joins Navy, local Guam engineers for concrete course

    Several Airmen from the 554th RED HORSE Squadron and Guam Air National Guard's 254th RED HORSE Squadron teamed up with U.S. Navy Sailors from Naval Base Guam to participate in the island's first joint concrete American Concrete Institute (ACI) field concrete testing program Dec. 9-12.

  • Chaplain's 50-year journey to become bishop of Fairbanks diocese

    "I've always had a committed faith and a love for God, but never really thought of becoming a priest until I was enlisted in the Air Force," said Chaplain (Maj.) Chad Zielinski. The Michigan native, who currently serves as the 354th Fighter Wing deputy wing chaplain, was ordained bishop of the

  • DOD Spirit of Hope Award ceremony

    Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee James presented the Department of Defense Spirit of Hope Award to military and civilian honorees during a ceremony at the Pentagon, Dec. 12.

  • Short-notice: A new way to exercise

    When 1st Lt. Matt Lavigne's phone rang late Dec. 10, he knew it was time to scramble into action. As a fighter pilot, preparedness is engraved into his DNA, but this was the first time he'd experienced something like this. In only a few hours, he'd be flying side by side with other F-16 Fighting

  • A $2 solution to a $3,000 problem

    A brand new circuit board for a rescue fire truck can cost more than $3,000 to replace, regardless of why it has malfunctioned, but fire truck maintainers from Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington dug a little deeper into the issue and discovered a $2 solution. Recently, the shop was faced with

  • Civil Air Patrol receives congressional recognition

    About 40 living World War II members and their relatives, as well as the families of deceased members, were in attendance as the Civil Air Patrol received the Congressional Gold Medal during a presentation Dec. 10, in the Emancipation Hall at the Capitol Visitors Center in Washington D.C.

  • AMC chief scientist receives Harold Brown Award

    Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee James presented Dr. Donald Erbschloe, the Air Mobility Command chief scientist, with the 2014 Harold Brown Award during a ceremony at the Pentagon, Dec. 9.

  • Thunderbirds release 2015 show schedule

    The U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds have finalized their 2015 show schedule. In its 62nd season, the team is slated to perform 71 demonstrations at 39 locations.

  • Air Force Fitness Management System slated for upgrade

    Active-duty, Air Force Reserve and Air National Guard officers and enlisted members who want to maintain copies of their pre-July 2010 fitness records need to access the Air Force Fitness Management System (AFFMS) and save or print their records by Dec. 30, Air Force Personnel Center officials said

  • AF realigns missions to enhance nuclear support

    In response to a directive from the secretary of the Air Force and chief of staff of the Air Force, the 377th Air Base Wing in Albuquerque, New Mexico, will realign under Air Force Global Strike Command (AFGSC), and the Air Force Nuclear Weapons Center (AFNWC) will reorganize, combining the AFNWC

  • Aviano stays 'Forward, Ready, Now' with joint exercise

    The 555th Fighter Squadron hosted a weeklong exercise with the U.S. and Netherlands joint tactical air controllers here Dec. 2, as a part of the U.S. Air Forces in Europe and Air Forces in Africa's "Forward, Ready, Now" initiative.

  • Air Force selects 409 officers for squadron command

    More than 400 officers from various career fields have been selected for logistics, mission support, materiel leader, operations support and air base squadron command, Air Force Personnel Center officials announced Dec. 5.

  • Nellis Airman powered by innovation

    Last December, certain variants of the F-16 Fighting Falcon had their ejection seat's oxygen system modified, which created a new requirement for oxygen bottle testing. This new change improved overall pilot safety, but also brought with it a hefty price tag -- which inspired one Airman at Nellis

  • Search continues for missing Airman in Guam

    An Airman who has been missing since Dec. 1 has been identified as Airman Alec M. Dye.Dye was deployed to Andersen Air Force Base from the 2nd Aircraft Maintenance Squadron at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana, and was last seen near Tarague Beach, Guam.

  • Colorado Air Guardsman's path to NFL

    Many young kids have hopes and dreams of doing something amazing when they grow up. Many want to be an astronaut, or a police officer. Others may want to serve in the armed forces or become a professional athlete.But for some, more than one dream can come true.

  • Tool to safeguard PII scheduled for AF-wide December rollout

    The Digital Signature Enforcement Tool is scheduled for Air Force-wide integration Dec. 5, providing Microsoft Outlook email users with an interactive, automated virtual assistant to help ensure the security of personally identifiable information

  • Resiliency in numbers

    Most Airmen have probably heard the expression "there's strength in numbers." Most Airmen have also probably heard of Comprehensive Airmen Fitness. When it comes to building resiliency, the two are not unrelated.

  • Airman returns from front lines of fight against Ebola

    Before many volunteers could begin fighting Ebola in West Africa, an Air Force major was on the ground in Monrovia, Liberia, paving the way for safe execution of their mission. As an epidemiologist and international health specialist for the U.S. Air Forces in Europe and Air Forces Africa Surgeon

  • Air Force identifies nickel-free material for F-35 aircraft systems

    Through a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) contract with the Air Force, Triton Systems, Inc., located in Massachusetts, developed a nickel-free material technology that is positioned for transition to several F-35 Joint Strike Fighter applications. Transition of this technology is

  • AFRL engineers awarded for fostering innovation, teamwork

    Two Air Force electronics engineers received the 2014 National Security and International Affairs Medal for saving the lives of Soldiers in Afghanistan by creating and deploying a new aerial sensor system to help U.S. Army and special forces units detect and destroy deadly improvised explosive

  • Life Cycle Management Center helps design transport isolation system

    The Air Force Life Cycle Management Center (AFLCMC) is playing a unique role in the United States' comprehensive Ebola response efforts in West Africa through the center's involvement in developing a transport isolation system. The system will enable safe aeromedical evacuation of Department of

  • The footprint of the Jolly Green Giant leaves its mark

    Tech. Sgt. Mathew Macella, the 56th Rescue Squadron pararescueman blue team NCO in charge, succinctly summed up the explanation for all the stickers of green feet found around Royal Air Force Lakenheath and what they mean for the 56th RQS. The origin of the green feet symbol came from Vietnam, when

  • Kunsan AB hosts Exercise Max Thunder 14-2

    U.S. Air Force, Army, Marine Corps and Navy personnel and aircraft are training with the Republic of Korea Air Force units Nov. 14 - 22, in the semi-annual, bilateral training exercise Max Thunder 14-2, here.

  • Air Force announces AFIMSC candidate bases

    Air Force officials announced today Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Joint Base San Antonio, Scott Air Force Base, and Wright-Patterson AFB as candidate bases to potentially host the headquarters (HQ) for the new Air Force Installation and Mission Support Center (AFIMSC).

  • Retrograde in full gear

    As the retrograde mission of transporting equipment and personnel out of Afghanistan continues, Dover AFB personnel are hard at work ensuring the job is done safely, on time and as efficiently as possible.

  • Tools to pencils: Airman makes career a work of art

    In March of 1962, just a few weeks after turning 18, Terry Lee stepped off the bus at then-Lackland Air Force Base, San Antonio, with the hopes of being an Airman. What happened in the years after would make a small-town boy into an Airman who could not only turn a wrench but also draw his way into

  • Kentucky Air Guard completes Ebola-response mission in Senegal

    Airmen from the Kentucky Air National Guard's 123rd Contingency Response Group transferred control of a humanitarian cargo hub to replacement forces here Nov. 18, successfully completing their support of an Ebola-response mission that has processed more than 750 tons of relief supplies for airlift

  • TACP receives second Silver Star medal

    Master Sgt. Thomas Case, a tactical air control party Airman in the 18th Air Support Operations Group here, received his second Silver Star medal Nov. 13, for heroic actions during a 2009 deployment to Afghanistan.

  • Mackay Trophy returns to AFSOC

    Under heavy enemy fire Dec. 21, 2013, the crew of Rooster 73 performed expert aerial maneuvers while simultaneously providing medical care to the critically-injured passengers on board their CV-22 Osprey.

  • Focused on the future, force improvement marks progress

    Over the past few months, many changes have come to Air Force Global Strike Command. What started as a grass-roots effort has become a monumental effort by Air Force leaders and Airmen to foster positive changes within the command.

  • Research laboratory honors top scientists, engineers

    Air Force Research Laboratory honored 12 outstanding scientists and engineers at the 2014 AFRL Fellows and Early Career Awards Banquet recently for their exceptional contributions to advancing technologies for the warfighter.

  • Injured EOD Airman returns to fuller life

    In an instant, he went from living his dream to being utterly destroyed on a dusty road in Iraq. An improvised explosive device exploded about two feet from his face, throwing him about 20 feet and leaving him unrecognizable. As his arm dangled to his side, he stumbled up and yelled for the medic.

  • Commentary: Airmen Powered by Innovation program launches new site

    In April of this year we launched the Airmen Powered by Innovation program aimed at turning your ideas into real cost savings for our Air Force. Since coming online API has received and reviewed more than 2,400 ideas and that number continues to climb. Thank you and keep the great ideas flowing.

  • Veterans in Blue Volume V out now

    For decades, Airmen have answered the call to serve and protect the nation’s interests, people and cherished freedoms that underpin it all, risking their lives for others, and thus, becoming heroes in the eyes of those they protected.

  • Reservist celebrates 6 years of cancer remission

    When her husband threatened to take her to the emergency room, she made an appointment with a cardiologist and later had her blood drawn. An urgent call from the doctor later sent her to the emergency room, where she was as stunned as everyone else with the diagnosis -- Acute Myelogenous Leukemia

  • Airlift squadron established for Ebola response in Senegal

    More than 35 Airmen and two C-130J Super Hercules from Dyess Air Force Base, Texas, arrived in Dakar, Senegal, this week to establish the 787th Air Expeditionary Squadron and to fly humanitarian cargo into Liberia as part of Operation United Assistance, the mission to fight Ebola in West Africa.

  • AF awards new launch, test range service contract

    The Air Force awarded the Launch and Test Range Integrated Service Contract (LISC) to RGNext on Nov. 6. The total contract value, including all potential options and potential award fee is $2 billion. LISC will provide the government with a single prime contractor responsible and accountable for

  • Poinsett Range: the environmental mission

    The Poinsett Electronic Combat Range, previously called Poinsett Bombing Range, opened in 1952 to be used as a real-world training range for military personnel.

  • Airman discovers grandfather's World War II story

    An Airman here recently discovered that his grandfather was among a small group of Americans who joined the Canadian military to thwart the tyranny of Nazi Germany prior to America entering World War II.

  • 815th Airlift Squadron provides support for Operation Southern Strike

    A large mechanical whir fills the back of the C-130J Super Hercules, as the back ramp doors begin to slowly open like a pair of iron jaws. Chief Master Sgt. Troy Peltier, a loadmaster with the 815th Airlift Squadron here, turns to the 25 paratroopers from the Army's 160th Special Operations Aviation

  • Air Force completes historic fuel conversion

    The Air Force took an important step in fiscal responsibility and supply chain efficiency as it converted its final stateside installation from Jet Propellant 8 (JP-8) fuel to the more common and commercially available Jet A fuel, Oct. 29 at Wright Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio.

  • Wingman now a part of BMT culture

    Glamorized during the ‘80s movie ‘Top Gun,’ the concept of a wingman was to always keep the lead pilot safe, even at the cost of veering off to fight the enemy. For the past few years, “wingman” has become a pledge, promise and commitment between Airmen to take care of themselves and those around

  • Defense Department officials establish Ebola medical support team

    When Capt. Stacey Morgan’s squadron commander sent her a text message saying that she needed to immediately call him, her first thought was, “Uh-oh. What did I do?” But after a minute or two of talking to her commander, her apprehension was quickly replaced by anxious excitement, as he asked her to

  • Senior NCOs lead wingman tactics process, foster culture of innovation

    Senior NCOs from the 480th Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Wing are leading the charge in the wing's newly created Wingman Tactics Process, created to collect and review best wingman practices already in place throughout the wing, and then share those ideas with the rest of the wing.

  • Airmen lead the way in last pre-Ranger course

    Twenty-one Airmen from around the Air Force were put to the test both physically and mentally in their pursuits to attend the U.S. Army Ranger school during the Ranger Assessment Course (RAC) Oct. 2-16, at Silver Flag Alpha range, Nevada.

  • Nominations open for 2015 Fisher humanitarian award

    Air Force officials are accepting nominees for the 2015 Zachary and Elizabeth Fisher Distinguished Civilian Humanitarian Award. Completed nomination packages are due to the Air Force Personnel Center by March 19.

  • Minot AFB awarded most reading minutes

    Minot Air Force Base was awarded first place for the 2014 Summer Reading Program, for the most minutes read, with more than 1.1 million minutes of reading time.

  • AF Medical Service seeks nominations for innovation award

    Personnel assigned to the Air Force Medical Service and Air Reserve Component who have contributed an innovative achievement to the AFMS community are encouraged to compete for the AFMS Outstanding Achievement in Innovation Award and submit by Dec. 1.

  • Airman makes a name for himself on X Factor UK

    Young Airmen are stationed all over the world and when at their home station are usually given the freedom to be reclusive "dorm dwellers" or indulgent in the local community. One young Airman decided just eating local cuisine or making local friends wasn't enough -- he wanted to be famous. Airman

  • AF hospital adds ‘virus-zapping' robot to inventory

    Standing at 5 feet 2 inches tall, U.S. Air Force Hospital Langley's newest staff member doesn't initially have a commanding presence; however, after five minutes, its impact has the potential to save countless lives around the world.

  • An Air Force first: ALO graduates Ranger School

    On average, more than 4,000 Soldiers go through the U.S. Army Ranger School each year. The number of Airmen who have completed the course since its inception in 1950 is only a little over 300.

  • Academy fliers soar above competition

    The Academy Flying Team won a top-level national flying competition for the 28th consecutive year, scoring first in overall school rankings, school flight events and school ground events.

  • ISR: A critical capability for 21st century warfare

    The progressive adaptations and breakthroughs made in the intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance arena have changed the way wars are fought, and the way commanders think about the battlespace.

  • 'Hurricane Hunters' busy with missions on both coasts

    It's been a busy two weeks for the Air Force Reserve's Hurricane Hunters. The 53rd Weather Reconnaissance Squadron flew their last of 15 missions into Hurricane Ana in the Pacific Monday while gathering weather data for the Central Pacific Hurricane Center. On the other side of the globe, the

  • Airmen close out successful SALITRE exercise

    After flying more than 50 sorties, participating in two community relations events, entertaining multiple media events and experiencing a visit from the President of Chile, U.S. Airmen participating in Chile's SALITRE 2014 exercise are returning home.

  • Illinois ANG soars skies over Poland

    Airmen from the U.S. and Polish air forces started training together Oct. 15, at Powidz Air Base, Poland, for the start of Aviation Detachment rotation 15-1.