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  • Around the Air Force: April 5

    This look around the Air Force takes us to Baltimore where military family members arrived after departing Turkey. Defense Secretary Ash Carter announces the creation of the Operation Inherent Resolve campaign medal and the 148th Fighter Wing, from Duluth, Minnesota, prepares for a deployment to

  • Gorenc discusses European Reassurance Initiative, air police mission

    The commander of U.S. Air Forces in Europe - Air Forces Africa said April 5 that the increase in European Reassurance Initiative funds next year will allow his command to improve its presence and facilities on the eastern side of NATO and to deter Russia. Gen. Frank Gorenc also told the Defense

  • B-52 conducts long-range training with Colombian forces

    A B-52 Stratofortress from Minot Air Force Base, North Dakota, conducted a long-range training sortie to engage with South American military partners April 1-2. During the course of the 27-hour, nonstop mission, the aircrew trained with the Colombian air force before executing a flyover of the

  • Passion vs. priorities

    Physical fitness doesn’t come easy for everyone -- sometimes the drive to finish one more repetition or set a new personal best just doesn’t cut it. For 1st Lt. Christian Torres, having the spirit to stay mentally and physically strong when going through adversity is not just found in the gym, it’s

  • Vice chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff views Tinker capabilities

    The vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff visited Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma, April 1 to learn more about the missions of the Air Force Sustainment Center and the contributions of associate units toward the nation's strategic nuclear deterrence.

  • DOD announces pilot tutoring program for service members

    Officials with the Defense Department Voluntary Education Program and the Defense Activity for Non-Traditional Education Support (DANTES) announced the launch of a pilot tutoring program that will provide service members with tutoring support at no cost, anytime, anywhere.

  • Airmen discuss one of the little-known best jobs in Air Force

    If you’re an Airman with technical skills, an outstanding performer who always meets physical training standards and has completed all military and other education requirements, the 844th Communications Squadron may have a job for you. The jobs themselves vary, but all involve working as part of the

  • Families ordered to leave Turkey arriving in US

    Military dependents and pets began arriving at Baltimore Washington International Airport, Maryland, March 31 following an ordered departure of Defense Department dependents due to security concerns in some areas of Turkey. Dependents arriving at BWI were flown on Air Mobility Command’s C-17

  • Ramstein units step up to help military families leaving Turkey

    An ordered departure for U.S. military family members to leave Turkey due to security concerns March 29, resulted in many of them traveling through Ramstein Air Base, Germany. Members of the Kaiserslautern military community, including Ramstein personnel, pitched in to assist fellow military

  • Incirlik ensures safe departure of families from Turkey

    While Incirlik Air Base remains a hub of activity in support of Operation Inherent Resolve, an ordered departure was approved March 29 for families of military members and Defense Department civilians stationed in Adana, Izmir and Mugla, Turkey, to include those on base.

  • C-17 drag reduction testing aims at saving fuel

    From testing synthetic biofuels to "vortex surfing," Edwards Air Force Base, California, is on the forefront of finding new ways to cut fuel costs for the Air Force. The latest venture is currently underway at the 418th Flight Test Squadron where a test team of Air Force and Boeing personnel

  • Deployed together: A tale of twin brothers

    Twin brothers often share similar experiences from birth to high school graduation. But only a few can claim to serve in a deployed unit at the same time. Senior Airman Emmanuel Taveras, an electrical and environmental journeyman, and his twin brother, Senior Airman Carlos Taveras, an aircraft

  • Cadets, special tactics Airmen honor fallen Academy grad

    More than 150 special tactics Airmen and U.S. Air Force Academy cadets honored fallen Academy graduate and Silver Star medal recipient Capt. Matthew D. Roland, dedicating a memorial display and completing memorial pushups in formation here March 30.

  • First families arrive at Ramstein from Turkey

    The first group of families arrived at Ramstein Air Base March 30 after the State Department and the secretary of defense approved the ordered departure of dependents of service members and Defense Department civilian personnel currently stationed in Adana, Izmir, and Mugla, Turkey.

  • Staff sergeant LEAPs on opportunity to use native tongue

    Born and raised in Nizhnekamsk, Russia, Anastasia Stuart traveled to the U.S. as a young adult with the intention of only staying a year to improve her English. One year quickly turned into two, and before she knew it, she enlisted into the U.S. Air Force.

  • Wartime medical innovation saves lives at home

    In January, the Food and Drug Administration approved the REBOA catheter, or resuscitative endovascular balloon occlusion of the aorta. The REBOA is a device that’s inserted into a hemorrhaging vessel and stops or slows blood flow to that injury, while allowing blood flow to continue to other body

  • Hanscom SFS captures best in AF again

    For the second year in a row, and the third time in four years, members of the 66th Security Forces Squadron at Hanscom Air Force Base, Massachusetts, are celebrating their selection as the Air Force Outstanding Small Size Security Forces Unit award.

  • James announces Office of Energy Assurance

    Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James announced the establishment of the Air Force Office of Energy Assurance and conducted a ribbon-cutting ceremony at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland March 22.

  • Mental maintenance: Tools to keep the mind fit

    Airmen often go to the fitness center; some spend several hours a week toning their bodies, while others go to simply maintain their physique. But what about strengthening the mind?

  • State Department, DOD approve dependents’ departure from Turkey

    The secretary of defense, in coordination with the secretary of state, has authorized the ordered departure of all Defense Department dependents not assigned to chief of mission authority from Adana (to include Incirlik Air Base), Ismir and Mugla, Turkey.

  • Maintenance is key to keeping Yokota, Kadena aircraft flying

    The aircraft at Yokota and Kadena air bases in Japan rely on the 374th Maintenance Squadron’s phase docks to receive their maintenance and keep them going. Every 540 days, a C-130 Hercules or MC-130 Talon II enters the phase docks for an inspection and repairs. During the 14- to 16-day process,

  • Airman attributes life changes to wrestling

    After moving from project housing to a higher income city when he was 9 years old, Morris Thomas, now a 50th Space Wing Safety Office staff sergeant, started a new school and was thrown into a world of discrimination and prejudice.

  • Crosstalks aimed at improving KC-135 service

    Experts from the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, the Air Force Reserve, National Guard Bureau and the Legacy Tanker Division conducted a customer support visit to Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma, and at two other bases March 14-18 to listen to unit concerns regarding KC-135 Stratotanker

  • Putting the Pegasus through its paces

    As the Air Force gets ready for the arrival of its newest aerial refueling and strategic military transport aircraft, a diverse group of Airmen is working hard to make sure the KC-46A Pegasus is ready to meet the service’s needs. Lt. Col. John Mikal is one of them.

  • JB Charleston Airmen support presidential mission to Cuba

    As President Barack Obama landed in Havana, Cuba, it marked the first time a sitting U.S. president visited the communist nation in over 88 years, and Airmen from Joint Base Charleston, South Carolina, played a pivotal role in the historic mission.

  • AFSVA on trend with mystery escape rooms

    Interactive, immersive escape rooms, such as Moriarty’s Parlor, are gaining popularity worldwide as entertainment and team-building experiences. The Air Force Services Activity is offering a choice of six room scenarios to 20 Air Force installations enterprise-wide as part of its Recharge for

  • Airmen’s Week marks first anniversary

    The 37th Training Wing will mark the first year of the Airmen’s Week program on March 25 at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, Texas. Airmen’s Week is a five-day course that helps Airmen better prepare for technical training school and beyond.

  • Evolution of GPS: From Desert Storm to today's users

    In a desert, it's easy to get lost. There are no roads, no signposts, nor vegetation to give locational clues. That was the grim situation facing U.S. and coalition forces during the 1990-1991 crisis in the Persian Gulf, known as Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm.

  • New Reserve unit to open doors at Keesler

    The 403rd Wing is going through a period of growth with the activation of an additional aircraft maintenance squadron solely focused on keeping the 815th Airlift Squadron's 10 C-130J Super Hercules aircraft healthy and in the air.

  • Chasing opportunity to fulfill a dream

    All children have dreams and it was no different for Lt. Col. Brett Chung growing up in Nagoya, Japan. Coming to the United States was something Chung thought about on a regular basis. Now many years later, he has not only fulfilled his youthful dream of coming to America he has seized opportunity,

  • Flying the RPA mission

    The aircraft is ready to fly, the ground control stations are up and running, and the crews have been briefed. Now it’s time to fly the remotely piloted aircraft. The pilot, sensor operator, and mission intelligence coordinator step into the control station to prepare for flight, but they’re not

  • AF Research Lab seeks to turn waste into energy

    It may seem like a scene from “Back to the Future,” but the Air Force Research Laboratory is looking to turn fiction into reality with a nearly $7 million waste-to-energy project.

  • AFSVA gets ready for 2016 youth camps

    Teenagers looking to cure those summertime blues will have various camps to choose from this year, thanks to central funding from the Air Force Services Activity, also known as AFSVA.

  • US, Turkish KC-135 units fly together for first time

    To better understand how each nation completes the vital air refueling mission, the U.S. Air Force and Turkish air force flew KC-135 Stratotankers together in formation for the first time March 8 over the Nevada Test and Training Range, northeast of Nellis Air Force Base.

  • SecAF, deputy energy secretary visit Davis-Monthan

    Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James and Deputy Energy Secretary Dr. Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall visited Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona, for the first time March 9 to gain firsthand knowledge about the various operations, priorities and capabilities.

  • Andrews Airmen enable Obama’s historic Cuba visit

    President Barack Obama touched down in Cuba on the iconic Air Force One on March 20, becoming the first sitting U.S. president to visit the country in nearly 90 years. While world leaders and citizens tuned into national news broadcasts of the visit, the men and women of the 89th Airlift Wing

  • Cope Tiger 2016 enhances capabilities through teamwork

    Readiness and continued development of multilateral interoperability remains a key priority for Indo-Asia-Pacific partners participating in the 22nd year of exercise Cope Tiger, a joint multilateral field training exercise that began March 7 at Korat Royal Thai Air Force Base. During the two-week

  • ACC commander addresses RPA health to Senate Armed Services Committee

    Gen. Hawk Carlisle, the commander of Air Combat Command, addressed plans to improve the health of the Air Force remotely piloted aircraft enterprise March 16 during a hearing of the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee’s Airland subcommittee in Washington, D.C. The purpose of the hearing was to

  • Inspired NCO spends career molding Airmen

    After troubles in high school, Joshua Smith found discipline in the Air Force and now teaches others as an Airman leadership school instructor at McConnell Air Force Base, Kansas.

  • Air Force leaders present FY 2017 budget request

    The military services’ secretaries and chiefs presented their respective branch’s fiscal year 2017 budget plan March 16 on Capitol Hill.Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James and Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark A. Welsh III testified on the Air Force’s fiscal 2017 national defense authorization

  • Goldfein addresses readiness, budget

    Military vice chiefs testified about the current state of readiness of U.S. forces before the Senate Armed Services Subcommittee on Readiness and Management Support on Capitol Hill March 15.

  • AFMC strategic plan to help carry Air Force to third offset

    Agility and innovation are cornerstones of a new Air Force Materiel Command strategic plan that will deliver war-winning capabilities. Those capabilities will propel the Air Force as a key element of the future national defense strategy known as the third offset.

  • Goldfein: Optimistic about future of airpower

    Equals part challenge and opportunity -- that’s how Air Force Vice Chief of Staff Gen. David L. Goldfein described as the current state of the Air Force March 10 during a Defense Programs Conference in Washington, D.C.

  • Total force team moves the mission in defending South Korea

    In an effort to deter aggression, fighter aircraft routinely fly while troops on the ground mobilize and train to defend South Korea. However, there still lies another piece to the puzzle. That puzzle piece is none other than the 607th Air Mobility Division.

  • TAAC-Air work with Afghan AF to build sustainable force

    A small group of Train Advise Assist Command–Air advisors make up the 441st and 442nd air expeditionary advisory squadrons at Kandahar Airfield, Afghanistan. Both squadrons are focused on working shoulder to shoulder with the Afghan Air Force to develop a professional, capable and sustainable air

  • Lessons learned from Operation Desert Storm

    Twenty five years ago, the world watched a display of military force in the Persian Gulf. America’s adversaries have spent each year since pursuing capabilities both to counter U.S. strengths and to exploit perceived weaknesses. Air Force Vice Chief of Staff Gen. David Goldfein participated in a

  • Airmen to appear on ‘Weather Geeks’

    For some Airmen, being called a weather geek is a term of endearment. Two Airmen from the 557th Weather Wing recently embraced their inner geek and will share their passion and expertise on an upcoming episode of "Weather Geeks" on the Weather Channel.

  • Sleep is serious: Catch your Zzzs

    “Beep. Beep. Beep,” the alarm blares. Time to get up. Do you hit snooze? On average, we spend 33 percent of our lives asleep. When assessing your overall health, have you considered your sleep habits?

  • Fairchild Airman named Red Cross Hometown Hero

    Master Sgt. Stephanie Horn, the health services manager for the 92nd Medical Group, was recognized as an American Red Cross Hometown Hero Feb. 26 by the American Red Cross Association for her lifesaving actions in January 2015 in Spokane, Washington.

  • Airmen help Soldiers, South Korea military in joint training

    Osan Air Base, South Korea, was tested March 10, when South Korea and U.S. military branches banded together in a multi-service, multi-cultural, chemical detection and decontamination exercise scenario here during Beverly Midnight 16-01.

  • DOD-wide Windows 10 rapid deployment to boost cybersecurity

    The Defense Department will deploy Windows 10 departmentwide by January to strengthen cybersecurity and streamline the information technology operating environment, according to a Feb. 26 memo by Deputy Defense Secretary Bob Work.

  • Resilience pays off on road to Air Force

    From being a young boy who could not speak a word of English to an Airman who instructs others on the effects altitude has on the human body, Senior Airman Jae Yu, of the 21st Aerospace Medicine Squadron, practiced resilience far before he ever joined the Air Force.

  • F-35 to touch down at air shows around the world

    Aviation and F-35A Lightning II fanatics have something special to look forward to this 2016 air show season. The Lightning II qualified March 6 at the Heritage Flight Conference at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona, to take part in the Air Combat Command Air Force Heritage Flight program.

  • Combat camera Airmen hone battlefield capabilities through Scorpion Lens

    More than 100 photo and broadcast journalists from the 1st Combat Camera Squadron at Joint Base Charleston and the 3rd Combat Camera Squadron from Joint Base San Antonio, Texas, are participating in Scorpion Lens 2016, an ability to survive and operate exercise at McCrady Training Center on Fort

  • AF senior leaders brief State of the Air Force

    Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James and Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark A. Welsh III discussed the State of the Air Force during a press conference at the Pentagon March 7.

  • James, Welsh testify before Congress

    The Air Force’s top two senior leaders testified before the House Appropriations Committee on Defense March 2 and the Senate Armed Services Committee March 3. They attested to the critical need of readiness. With less than half of the Air Force’s combat forces prepared for a high-end fight, the

  • Chièvres AB: Separated, self-sufficient

    Chièvres Air Base is home to the 424th Air Base Squadron, a group of Airmen nestled in the heart of the Belgian countryside to provide airfield operations support for the Supreme Allied Commander Europe and Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE), NATO transient aircraft and distinguished

  • Airmen look ahead after historic GPS satellite mission

    Capt. Trung Nguyen was born the year the first of the latest series of GPS satellites was blasted into space. Twenty seven years later, the Airman helped process the final GPS IIF satellite, worth about $131 million, before it was launched on an Atlas V rocket in early February.

  • Tuskegee Airman reflects on diversity

    It was 1944 and the U.S. was in the midst of two battles -- a war on two sides of the world and the onslaught of cultural changes on the homefront. Meanwhile, a young African-American Soldier picked up trash on the white sandy beaches at Keesler Field, Mississippi. He had been briefed that although

  • Becoming a boom

    From an early age, Airman 1st Class Shelby Bowling, a 350th Air Refueling Squadron boom operator, had an idea of what she wanted to do when she grew up. It wasn't until midway through her time in college that life provided her an opportunity to take a chance.

  • C-17 Airmen expand global reach

    Forging combat mobility forces is something that the aircrew instructors of the C-17 Globemaster III take extremely serious, but that mission is not just limited to skies over the U.S. A team of Airmen from Altus Air Force Base, Oklahoma, and Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington, recently spent two

  • Price of perfection: AF Honor Guard Drill Team

    A standard U.S. Air Force Drill Team performance features a professionally choreographed sequence of show-stopping weapon maneuvers, precise tosses, complex weapon exchanges, and a walk through the gauntlet of spinning weapons. Airman 1st Class Larry Brown has trained for more than a year for the

  • State of AF: Modernizing for next offset strategy

    Budget plans are poised to keep the Air Force atop of its game, with a new bomber and advanced technology to help Airmen execute a future offset strategy, the head of the service announced at the Air Force Association’s Air Warfare Symposium Feb. 26.

  • AF discusses game-changing technologies during defense innovation hearing

    The Air Force’s pursuit of game-changing technologies and the need to attract and retain talented science, technology, engineering, and mathematics professionals were at the center of discussions during a hearing on defense innovation before the House Armed Services Committee’s subcommittee on

  • Welsh presents AF update at AFA

    Chief of Staff of the Air Force Gen. Mark A. Welsh III outlined Air Force operations from 2015, the service’s plan for 2016, and what is to come in the future at the Air Force Association’s Air Warfare Symposium Feb. 25.

  • Cody gives enlisted perspective at AFA

    Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force James A. Cody spoke to a room of Airmen and civilians about today’s generation of Airmen and their families during the Air Force Association Air Warfare Symposium Feb. 25.

  • Precision strikes keeping enemy on target

    Lessons learned in past conflicts have now made it possible to bomb enemy targets within just a few feet to reduce collateral damage, a top Air Force commander said Feb. 25 at the Air Force Association’s Air Warfare Symposium in Orlando, Florida.

  • 'Eddie the Eagle' star soars

    Hugh Jackman, star of the upcoming movie "Eddie the Eagle," received a civic leader flight in an F-16 Fighting Falcon at Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth from the 301st Fighter Wing Feb. 19 in a display of Air Force Reserve combat capability and air superiority.

  • Pacific partners practice humanitarian assistance during Cope North

    Military members from six nations joined together for a humanitarian assistance and disaster relief deployment throughout the region of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands Feb. 14-18. The deployment is part of Cope North 16, a multilateral exercise, including the U.S. Air Force and air

  • Dudette passes 1,000 combat flight hours

    Maj. Jennifer received a hero’s welcome from members of the 380th Air Expeditionary Wing as she surpassed the 1,000 combat-hour milestone in the F-15E Strike Eagle at an undisclosed location in Southwest Asia, Feb. 13. Achieving this milestone is a career defining moment for any F-15E aircrew

  • Minot tests Minuteman III with launch from Vandenberg AFB

    A team of Air Force Global Strike Command Airmen from the 91st Missile Wing at Minot Air Force Base, North Dakota, and the 625th Strategic Operations Squadron at Offutt AFB, Nebraska, aboard the Airborne Launch Control System, launched an unarmed LGM-30G Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic

  • Air Force senior leaders share lessons learned from Desert Storm

    During recent visits to Howard University and the University of Maryland, two Air Force senior leaders shared memories and lessons learned from Operation Desert Storm with more than 160 Washington, D.C., area Air Force ROTC cadets as part of the Air Force’s focus on the 25th anniversary of the

  • CSAF celebrates Whiteman total force excellence

    Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark A. Welsh III visited Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri, Feb. 16-18 to engage with civic leaders and meet Airmen of the world's only B-2 Spirit stealth bomber base.

  • Tuskegee Airmen share life lessons

    Three members of the famed Tuskegee Airmen visited with Airmen at the Pentagon during a meet and greet hosted by Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James Feb. 16. Retired Col. Charles McGee and former Cadets William Fauntroy Jr. and Walter Robinson Sr. shared stories and insights about their lives as

  • New co-chairman joins Air Force’s retiree council

    A new co-chairman will share the head of the table at this year's Air Force Retiree Council meeting in May. Retired Lt. Gen. Stephen Hoog, who left active duty in October, succeeds retired Lt. Gen. Steven Polk as council co-chair with retired Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force Rodney McKinley.