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U.S. Air Force News

  • CSAF letter to Airmen

    Attached is the first in a series of short papers I will share that outlines my thinking in key focus areas. You will find each in our Strategic Master Plan (SMP) and Air Force Future Operating Construct (AFFOC); and each nests nicely under SecAF’s priorities of: Taking Care of Airmen; Balancing

  • Around the Air Force: Aug. 9

    On this look around the Air Force, in reference to the Real ID Act, some forms of identification will no longer be accepted to gain entrance to Air Force facilities; Air Force ROTC cadets experience a special tactics obstacle course; and a B-52 Stratofortress crew completes a mission that took more

  • Archaeologists discover proof of wetlands, ancient life on Utah range

    A team of archaeologists recently working on the Utah Test and Training Range under the direction of the Hill Air Force Base Cultural Resource Program discovered a 12,300-year-old hearth -- an archaeological "feature" -- and artifacts, which tell the story of North America's earliest inhabitants and

  • SR-71 pilots, crew relive absolute speed record

    In 1976, it was a different time. The Cold War with the Soviet Union was in full swing and Americans were standing in line to buy gas. That year was also the country’s bicentennial birthday. To celebrate, officials decided to attempt to break some records with an aircraft known as the Lockheed SR-71

  • MacDill Airman competes in ultramarathons

    Inspiration for the modern marathon, a 26.2-mile race, stems from military origins. Legend tells of a Greek soldier who ran from Marathon to Athens to deliver news of the defeated Persian army. More than two millennia later, one Airman at MacDill Air Force Base is writing his own story.

  • New AF violence prevention specialists training begins

    Representatives from the major commands and more than 30 Air Force installations attended training at Dobbins Air Reserve Base July 18-29 to become violence prevention specialists. The Specialists for the Primary Prevention of Violence is being set up as a new helping agency for Airmen and their

  • Tankers enable long-range bomber capability during Polar Roar

    Mobility Airmen play a vital role in deterrence and stand ready to operate in support of global operations at a moment’s notice. Air Mobility Command Airmen, 15 KC-135 Stratotankers and 10 KC-10 Extenders enabled Air Force Global Strike Command B-52 Stratofortresses and B-2 Spirits to sustain air

  • Leader training on Blended Retirement System available via mobile app

    The online Blended Retirement System leader course, released in June, is designed to educate leaders on the new retirement system. The training provides both military and civilian leaders of Airmen with a working knowledge of the BRS and the Defense Department plan to educate the force prior to

  • A-10s land on highway in Estonia

    Eight Air Force Reserve Command A-10 Thunderbolt IIs conducted highway landings on the Jägala-Käravete Highway in Northern Estonia Aug 1.

  • Reservists assist aerial firefighting efforts

    An Air Force Reserve C-130 Hercules equipped with a U.S. Forest Service Modular Airborne Fire Fighting System departed Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado, Aug. 3 to support ongoing aerial firefighting efforts in the West.

  • Repair Network Integration helps build a better repair network

    During periods where mission generation needs exceed local maintenance capabilities, backshops have historically relied on informal contacts and processes to increase capacity. Repair Network Integration, however, offers a single point of contact to help maintenance backshops explore all available

  • Airman trains to be better in the long run

    Staff Sgt. Benjamin Glenn is a 352nd Special Operations Maintenance Squadron CV-22 Osprey crew chief and a dedicated runner. He’s running half and full marathons in elite-level times, and the Air Force Special Operations Command chose him to represent the command in this year’s Air Force Marathon in

  • Compass Call receives navigation upgrade

    Since it became operational, the EC-130H Compass Call has demonstrated its electronic combat power in tactical air operations around the world, and this year the aircraft has achieved another first. The aircraft has received an avionic viability program upgrade to make it more effective in combat

  • AF duo key to Army medical aid in Honduras

    Medical readiness training exercises, military partnership engagements and mobile surgical team deployments have been the backbone of Joint Task Force-Bravo’s humanitarian mission in Central America for the past 23 years and have touched the lives of hundreds of thousands of people, built partner

  • AF declares the F-35A ‘combat ready’

    The F-35A Lightning II fifth-generation fighter aircraft was declared ‘combat ready’ by Gen. Hawk Carlisle, the commander of Air Combat Command, Aug 2.

  • MTIs and cadet cadre form partnership

    A group of military training instructors from Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, Texas, joined cadet cadre in Jacks Valley, Colorado, toward the end of July as part of an Air Education and Training Command and U.S. Air Force Academy training partnership.

  • A honey of a mission: Airmen help save, relocate 25,000 bees

    Earlier this month, Malmstrom Air Force Base encountered a wildlife phenomenon, and through perseverance and understanding, handled what could have been a sticky situation in the most natural way possible. Airmen utilized quick thinking and humane treatment to save the lives of approximately 25,000

  • Fighting terror with diversity

    In the 711th Human Performance Wing and across the Air Force, Airmen are encouraged to bring everything they have to the fight. Capt. Patrick Mudimbi, an environmental health consultant for the U.S. Air Force School of Aerospace Medicine, has some unique weapons in his arsenal -- he’s from the

  • F-35A program continues to make improvements

    Airmen of the 388th and 419th Fighter Wings at Hill Air Force Base, Utah, have been preparing the F-35A Lightning II for combat readiness since the first operational aircraft was received in September 2015.

  • Around the Air Force: July 26

    On this look around the Air Force the chief of staff of the Air Force and chief master sergeant of the Air Force address basic allowance for housing concerns, Airmen partner with Kenyans to provide aid, and weapons loaders load missiles internally and externally on an F-35A Lightning II.

  • Policy changes allow Airmen to retrain into special ops

    In a move to meet the high demand for battlefield Airmen, the Air Force announced changes to retraining and cross-flow, outlined in a policy memorandum from April. The changes allow Airmen to be released from their current jobs in the Air Force to cross-train into the special tactics career fields,

  • Professional bad guys: Space aggressors prepare Airmen for the enemy

    Walking out to an F-16 Fighting Falcon, Staff Sgt. Erick Vega is told upon landing that the pilot experienced loss of GPS. An hour passes before Vega, an avionics specialist from Aviano Air Base, Italy, determines that adversaries have degraded the system through an attack on space assets.

  • WWII veteran retires after 70 years of military, civil service

    This September, Anthony “Tony” Duno will celebrate his retirement from the Air Force after 70 years of service, making him the longest serving civilian in Air Force history. Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee James recognized Duno’s accomplishments during a ceremony at the Pentagon in

  • Blue Flag exercise marks 40th Anniversary

    Airmen from 505th Combat Training Squadron are the creators and controllers of a live, virtual and constructive world that takes air operation centers and Air Force forces staff through a quest to sharpen their skills at planning, executing and controlling war and relief operation scenarios. The

  • Weather team award honors legacy of fallen Airman

    To honor the legacy and devotion of a fallen brother-in-arms, an award was dedicated to the life of Lt. Col. William Schroeder and given to a Special Operations Weather Team training pipeline graduate here July 21.

  • STRATCOM deputy commander receives fourth star

    Air Force Gen. Stephen W. Wilson, the U.S. Strategic Command deputy commander, received his fourth star July 22 during a promotion ceremony at the parade field on Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska.

  • AF begins study on noise exposures

    An Air Force Surgeon General initiative called Total Exposure Health will soon advance from a concept to a real-world demonstration at an operational base. Total Exposure Health focuses on primary prevention, which includes exposures in the workplace, the environment and lifestyles, in order to

  • Webb takes command of AFSOC

    Lt. Gen. Brad Webb assumed command of Air Force Special Operations Command in a ceremony July 19 at Hurlburt Field, Florida.

  • Airmen practice rescuing downed pilots in Pacific Thunder 16-2

    Units from the U.S. Pacific Air Forces practiced rescuing downed pilots during exercise Pacific Thunder 16-2 in South Korea. The two-week training event combines U.S. and South Korean forces to enhance interoperability for combat search and rescue missions across the Korean Peninsula.

  • Airman selected to attend culinary forum for top US military chefs

    Airman 1st Class Alexandra Ayub, a 90th Force Support Squadron missile chef, won the Arthur J. Myers Food Service Excellence Award for the Western Hemisphere earlier this year. As a result, she’s now been selected to represent the Air Force at the Armed Forces Forum for Culinary Excellence at the

  • Goldfein hosts first town hall with CMSAF

    The Air Force’s top officer and enlisted leader hosted a town hall forum July 20 in the Boyd Auditorium at Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama. During the 70-minute forum, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David L. Goldfein and Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force James A. Cody answered several questions from

  • 100-plus aircraft fly in for exercise Red Flag 16-3

    The three-week long Red Flag 16-3, a U.S.-only exercise that tests all participating units’ combat capabilities in a joint environment that centers on multi-domain integration, kicked off at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada, July 11.

  • A-10s deploy to Slovakia for cross-border training

    The 122nd Fighter Wing, which flies the A-10 "Warthog" airframe, has deployed eight A-10 Thunderbolt IIs and approximately 140 Airmen in support of Operation Atlantic Resolve for a month-long combined training event, overseas, to Sliač Air Base, Slovakia.

  • Looking Glass flight broadens Airmen’s horizon

    Missileers from across the 20th Air Force recently accompanied their commander on the Airborne National Command Post as part of a “fly along” program to witness the national impact of their mission.

  • Quality assurance Airmen ensure cargo aircraft are mission ready

    Aircraft maintainers hold themselves to a high standard when performing their daily duties because they know one mistake could lead to devastating consequences. Kadena Air Base, Japan, is home to six different airframes and a partner unit that hosts two additional airframes for cargo functions, the

  • EOD immersion serves as eye-opener

    Staff Sgt. Michael McNally, a 355th Maintenance Group scheduler, recently applied to retrain as an explosive ordnance disposal technician and attended a 10-day orientation with the EOD squadron at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona, to learn about the career field.

  • Air dominance and the critical role of fifth-generation fighters

    Gen. Hawk Carlisle, the Air Combat Command commander, discussed the importance of air superiority and the need to assure it by modernizing the combat air force during a hearing of the House Armed Services Committee Tactical Air and Land Forces Subcommittee in Washington, D.C., July 13.

  • Residency program serves military, civilian medical personnel

    The Family Medicine Residency Program brings together military and civilian medical personnel while building a partnership of collaboration and a well-rounded learning environment for program participants, which strengthens their abilities to take care of their patients.

  • Around the Air Force: July 12

    In this look around the Air Force, eight new bases are nominated as possible battlefield Airmen training bases, a new undershirt helps keep Airmen cool, and a U.S. Air Force Academy graduate makes the Olympic team.

  • Airman links deployed operators to human performance experts

    Many scientists and engineers go directly from school to laboratories and do not get the opportunity to work side by side with customers who use the products they create. For a behavioral scientist in the 711th Human Performance Wing at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, that’s not the case.

  • Detachment standardizes aeromedical qualification training for total force

    Airmen assigned to 31 aeromedical evacuation squadrons across the Air Force must complete vigorous training to provide lifesaving in-transit care on fixed-wing aircraft. The 375th Air Mobility Wing’s newest formal training unit, Detachment 4, located at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, is the

  • Airman vaults to spot on US Olympic team

    First Lt. Cale Simmons, who cleared the bar at 5.65 meters -- 18 feet, 6.4 inches -- in the men's pole vault finals, secured a spot on the U.S. Olympic team at the U.S. Olympic team track and field finals at Eugene, Oregon.

  • Around the Air Force: July 8

    In this look around the Air Force the first enlisted RQ-4 Global Hawk pilots have been selected for training, an MQ-9 Reaper crashed in northern Syria, and a C-17 Globemaster III was awarded the best static display at an air show in England.

  • Battlefield Airmen use science to beat the heat

    Heat-related illness is a critical factor when personnel are operating in extreme temperatures. Dr. Reginald O'Hara and his exercise physiology research team at the U.S. Air Force School of Aerospace Medicine on Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, are working to reduce that heat stress.

  • Little Rock Airman saves woman from drowning

    It was June 25, a normal Saturday of kayaking at the Ouachita River Whitewater Park in Malvern, Arkansas, for Senior Airman Colton Lien and his friends when they witnessed a woman fall out her inner tube into the middle of the river.

  • Reserve C-17 wins best in show at UK air show

    Reservists from the 315th Airlift Wing at Joint Base Charleston, South Carolina, participated in the annual Yeovilton Air Day at Royal Naval Air Station Yeovilton, England, on July 2, and they were also awarded the show’s top prize, the best static display award.

  • Two missions, one fight

    The 737th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron and the 386th Expeditionary Aircraft Maintenance Squadron have two different missions, yet work together every day to ensure the single mission of the C-130 Hercules can equip and prepare our forces to stay in the fight another day.

  • Around the Air Force: July 1

    In this look around the Air Force, Gen. David Goldfein is confirmed to be the next Air Force chief of staff; the Air Force Personnel Center is accepting pilot applications; and five more bases have been nominated to potentially have KC-46A Pegasus tankers.

  • Goldfein swears in as 21st CSAF

    Gen. David L. Goldfein was sworn in as the Air Force’s 21st chief of staff by Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James during a ceremony at the Pentagon on July 1.

  • Small team ensures special tactics career fields grow with the best

    Special tactics career field training pipelines are some of the most physically and psychologically challenging in the Air Force. To ensure the correct individuals are on the battlefield, the Recruitment, Assessment and Selection team at Hurlburt Field, Florida, puts the cross-training candidates

  • Airmen help save fishermen at sea after ship catches fire

    Members of a special operations surgical team assigned to the 720th Special Tactics Group at Hurlburt Field, Florida, worked to save the lives of two critically-burned fishermen rescued 500 miles off the coast of Bermuda on June 22.

  • Wargame provides reality check for war plans

    More than 70 mobility and logistics professionals from the U.S. and three allied countries convened for an exercise known as Global Mobility, Agile Combat Support (GLOMO/ACS) at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, New Jersey, June 20-24. Air Mobility Command has led the biennial wargame since 2002. In

  • Teamwork, airlift keys to success of exercise in Gabon

    Airmen from the 62nd Airlift Wing at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington, participated in Central Accord 2016, a joint military exercise with nearly 1,000 participants from 14 countries, which took place on the western coast of Africa June 10-24.

  • Kunsan maintainers give F-16 new wings

    Airmen assigned to the 8th Maintenance Squadron and 8th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron at Kunsan Air Base, South Korea, are tasked to ensure one aircraft is ready to fly, fight and win with a simultaneous double-wing replacement.

  • PTSD awareness leads to positive treatment

    Post-traumatic stress disorder can be debilitating in some patients, but thanks to advancements in research and the continued training of mental health providers, treatments are getting better all the time. Maj. Joel Foster, the chief of Air Force Deployment Mental Health, said treating PTSD has

  • Documenting a tragedy: Global Strike historian recalls Khobar Towers

    Yancy Mailes, the Air Force Global Strike Command historian, was a 27-year-old staff sergeant at the time. It was June 25, 1996, and he had been the wing’s historian for three months. With little training and less experience, he found himself as one of the key contributors to documenting the tragedy

  • Edwards team creates mobile, reconfigurable cockpit

    The Portable Manned Interactive Cockpit was designed and is being built by members of the 772nd Test Squadron at Edwards Air Force Base, California. The PMIC is expected to be completed and ready for use by July 2016.

  • Minnesota guardsmen help secure skies above South Korea

    The Air National Guard is frequently called upon when U.S. Pacific Command needs additional assets to deliver rapid air capabilities in the Pacific region, and Airmen from the 148th Fighter Wing out of Duluth, Minnesota, are currently stepping up to that call.

  • Liaison officers keep communication flowing in Swift Response

    As exercise Swift Response 16 began phase II, with C-130J Super Hercules aircraft flying overhead and Soldiers operating on the ground, air mobility liaison officers kept effective communications flowing between both elements to ensure a successful exercise.

  • ACC: F-35 on track for IOC

    The F-35A Lightning II is on track to declare initial operational capability between August and December. Col. David Chace, the F-35 systems management office chief and lead for F-35 operational requirements at Air Combat Command, answers questions on the fifth-generation fighter.

  • Guardsmen train at Maintenance University

    More than 260 Air National Guard members from five states attended a weeklong course in aircraft maintenance here to enhance proficiency in everything from hydraulics to electrical generation.The annual event, now in its eighth year, is called Maintenance University, said Capt. James Campbell, the

  • Around the Air Force: June 21

    In this look around the Air Force, Gen. David Goldfein testifies before the Senate Armed Services Committee on his nomination for Air Force chief of staff, and the new Blended Retirement System gives Airmen more retirement options.