HomeNews

NATO Air Policing operations

U.S. Air Force News

  • Outstanding airmen honored

    The Air Force’s 12 Outstanding Airmen of the Year for 2003 received a ceremonial tribute Sept. 15 at the Air Force Association convention here.Each year, the AFA honors the 12 airmen at its annual convention in Washington, D.C. The program was initiated at the organization’s 10th annual national

  • Officials set holiday mailing dates, policies

    The dates for mailing items to and from overseas locations in time for the holidays are fast approaching, and Military Postal Service Agency officials have suggestions for ensuring packages and letters arrive on time.In fact, customers who mail early may save money and still have an on-time

  • AF offers multilingual thank you

    Airmen whose parents speak languages other than English can now order Air Force Parent Pins with accompanying cards translated into one of 100 languages.The new Your Guardians of Freedom initiative is an extension of the Parent-Pin program called “E Pluribus Unum.” The Latin term comes from the

  • Artwork supports Pentagon Memorial Fund

    Lt. Col. Pam Hodge remembers the immediate sense of calm she felt when she heard the roar of the first armed F-16 Fighting Falcon arrive at the Pentagon after the Sept. 11 attacks."I felt like a little kid hearing his mother's voice," said Hodge, who is assigned to the secretary of the Air Force’s

  • Band of the Rockies becomes academy band

    The U.S. Air Force Band of the Rockies will be renamed The U.S. Air Force Academy Band on Oct. 1. The band will continue its primary mission of "troop support" while refocusing its national touring mission to support the recruiting and community relations needs of the academy.This move realigns the

  • Officials offer tips for West Nile

    Base health officials here confirmed Sept. 4 that a sample of mosquitoes collected on base tested positive for the West Nile Virus. Other Air Force bases have reported similar discoveries.As part of ongoing monitoring, workers at the public health flight here have been setting mosquito traps at

  • Deployed airmen get break on loans

    Servicemembers who have been deployed or mobilized are not required to make student loan payments during their absences.Federal regulations require lenders to postpone the student loan program payments of active-duty servicemembers. This applies to people of the National Guard and Ready Reserves

  • Officials announce OTS selections

    Air Force officials are giving 11 enlisted airmen the chance to trade in their stripes for gold bars by choosing them to attend Officer Training School, officials announced Sept. 3. Air Force Recruiting Service officials conducted OTS Selection Board 0307, which met here. The board considered 206

  • Combined Federal Campaign kicks off

    The 2003 to 2004 Combined Federal Campaign began Sept. 1 and will run for six consecutive weeks through Dec. 15 for bases within the continental United States. The overseas CFC campaign will be conducted for Oct. 1 through Dec. 15.Exact dates and campaign goals are established in each geographic

  • Murray discusses issues at Minot

    Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force Gerald Murray discussed current issues with airmen here during a visit Aug. 28 to 30.Topics included the test utility uniform, the Dorms-4-Airmen Program, the new fitness standards, air and space expeditionary force rotations, and retention and recruiting

  • Troops head out to record holiday greetings

    Broadcasters from the Army and Air Force Hometown News Service will begin collecting holiday greetings from troops overseas Sept. 8.Three teams of military broadcasters are expected to return here with more than 13,000 individual messages to be sent to local television and radio stations in the

  • Letters, small packages move quicker

    The U.S. Postal Service and the Military Postal Service Agency process about two million pounds of mail a week for troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. Of those, some items make it to the recipient faster than others, said Navy Lt. Cmdr. Brian Lomax, agency chief of plans and policy.Depending on where

  • Base is first to test alternative fuel cell

    A new fuel cell is giving airmen here a sneak peek at the Defense Department's proposed plan for using hydrogen as an alternative fuel source. The test unit installed here is the fifth in the Department of Defense and the first to be evaluated on an Air Force base, officials said.Thirty military

  • Recruiting, retention outlook good

    Despite predictions to the contrary, Americans are continuing to volunteer for the military, and those already in are re-enlisting at a vigorous rate.Early in the war on terrorism, many critics predicted the United States would have to return to the draft to man the forces. But in this 30th year of

  • Contractor to control air traffic at Bagram

    The base here is scheduled to be the first of four supporting Operation Enduring Freedom to replace Air Force air traffic controllers and airfield managers with contracted civilians. The transition is expected by the end of September.“We expect a seamless transition with no interruption to air

  • Air Force reaches recruiting goal

    The Air Force reached its enlisted-contract goal Aug. 22 with the signing of its 37,000th enlistment contract. More than 32,000 people entered basic military training since Sept. 30. The Air Force now has enough contracts to meet its goal for the fiscal year and has for the past four years,

  • IMAX film crew wraps session at Nellis

    Filming wrapped for the summer here Aug. 22 on an IMAX film based on the Air Force and the mission of Red Flag.The 45-minute, multimillion-dollar film is scheduled to be released in 2004, according to officials.“IMAX is a spectacular venue in which to showcase the Air Force,” said Maj. Gen. Steve

  • 'Airport in a suitcase' thwarts poor visibility

    Airmen from Robins Air Force Base, Ga., are providing essential airfield systems here for forces fighting in Operation Iraqi Freedom.The 5th Combat Communications Group airmen are using an air traffic and control landing system they call their "airport in a suitcase" to help aircraft land safely

  • Academy seeks new slogan

    The U.S. Air Force Academy's Association of Graduates is seeking a new slogan to affix to the ramp leading into the cadet area here."Bring Me Men" was the previous slogan. It was based on an 1894 poem by Sam Walter Foss, which reads in part, "Bring me men to match my mountains, Bring me men to

  • Rumsfeld: Terror war drives transformation

    The ongoing global war against terrorism makes U.S. military transformation efforts an imperative goal, Department of Defense’s top civilian and uniformed officer said here Aug. 14.Gen. Richard B. Myers, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, accompanied Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld to a

  • Rocket-propellant leak cleaned

    Officials completed cleanup efforts Aug. 14 after rocket propellant leaked Aug. 12 as it was being loaded onto a Titan IV rocket.Base officials said no one was injured, and there was no damage to the launch vehicle. Preliminary findings indicate that during the load of the propellant, an oxidizer

  • AF offers short-term enlistments

    Beginning in October, 1 percent of new fiscal 2004 Air Force enlisted accessions, or about 370 recruits, will be able to sign up for a 15-month enlistment, as part of the National Call to Service program.The congressionally mandated program is designed to let people serve their country who might

  • Deployed airmen getting small-town living

    Airmen deployed here will soon be saying farewell to their tents and hello to small-town living.This welcome change for airmen is just part of the transformation of this expeditionary base into a permanent air base with most of the amenities found at home.“We’re in the process of building a small

  • Feedback vital to uniform test

    Feedback will be key for Air Force leaders making their decision on the newly proposed utility uniform, said the Air Force’s top enlisted airman. “We want airmen’s feedback,” said Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force Gerald R. Murray during his visit here Aug. 6 to 10. “We don’t want

  • Report lauds suicide prevention program

    The Air Force’s Suicide Prevention Program has been hailed as a “model program” in a landmark report released by the president's New Freedom Commission on Mental Health.The 113-page report, titled “Achieving the Promise: Transforming Mental Health Care in America,” cites an “urgent need for action

  • CAP recognized for post-9/11 work

    For its work in the aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, Civil Air Patrol has been selected to receive the Associations Advance America Summit Award.CAP is one of only six associations chosen for this award, the highest honor bestowed by the American Society of Association Executives

  • BMT sets new fitness standards

    Chief of Staff Gen. John Jumper announced July 30 the Air Force would be raising fitness standards in January. More rigorous basic military training graduation standards will take effect here Oct. 12.Basic military training daily physical fitness regimens are now tougher and more focused on

  • Promotion study list now available

    Promotion-eligible enlisted people can now find out which materials to study for the 2004 testing cycles.The most current Weighted Airman Promotion System catalog, which lists the materials used by test writers to develop the 2004 promotion tests, is now available on the Air Force Personnel Center

  • Airmen get peek at new uniform

    A prototype of the new Air Force utility uniform was unveiled July 9 in various duty sections at Andrews Air Force Base, Md., and Bolling AFB, D.C.Senior Master Sgt. Jacqueline Dean, from the Air Force uniform board, enlisted the aid of eight airmen to demonstrate both the men’s and women’s version

  • OIF veterans discuss lessons

    Even though the air campaign for Operation Iraqi Freedom was successful in bringing down the Iraqi regime in 21 days, leaders met here recently to discuss ways to improve upon that effort.Among the issues they covered was the responses to increased surface-to-air threats to coalition forces

  • Quilting for a cause

    Natalie Veum’s life was progressing at a normal clip. She was young, happily married and working a full-time job she enjoyed.But in the course of one night, her life changed forever.It started when the 24 year old woke with a coldness on her right side, which a series of MRIs, spinal taps and

  • Air Force featured at AirVenture 2003

    The Air Force, a long-time presence at the Experimental Aircraft Association’s AirVenture air show, brings aviation enthusiasts a new look this year. Alongside the largest display at EAA, the Air Force’s newest recruiting tool offer visitors a chance to “cross into the blue.”Located in the Air

  • Team Air Force cycles across Iowa

    The Team Air Force cycling team rode into town here July 27 in military formation, met by cheers, applause and chants of “Air Force, Air Force…” The event marked the end of the seven-day, 450-mile Des Moines Register’s Annual Great Bike Ride Across Iowa.The team, comprising about 90 cyclists and

  • Air Force seeks female MTIs

    Staff Sgt. Lynn Barron came to Air Force basic military training in 1995 carrying one bag and one mental image of a basic military training instructor: a big, loud, gruff man with a "Smokey the Bear" hat.When Barron first encountered her MTI, the person she met was not quite who she was

  • Travis puts new face on blood program

    A $1 million upgrade in frozen-blood processing and thawing here is expected to help level the inventory in the "feast-or-famine" business of blood collection in the Department of Defense.The Armed Services Whole Blood Processing Lab-West, a tenant unit at Travis, is one of two tri-service storage

  • Officer sets sights on silver oak leaves

    His personal data sheet is a blow-by-blow inventory of educational achievements, professional successes and impressive assignments that span a career of more than 16 years.When he went before the lieutenant colonel promotion board in November 2001, his chances for promotion looked promising.However,

  • August issue of Citizen Airman available

    The August edition of Citizen Airman highlights how F-16 Fighting Falcon instructors in Arizona are going above and beyond in their efforts to provide the Air Force with top-notch combat fighter pilots.The magazine tells how airmen from the 944th Fighter Wing at Luke Air Force Base are kicking the

  • Airman signs humanitarian contracts in Mali

    With thousands, sometimes millions of dollars at stake, contracting officers take their jobs seriously. They visit work sites, meet the employees and get a feel for the job at hand.Tech. Sgt. Brad Smith, of the 39th Contracting Squadron here, is no exception. But his most recent work site was not

  • Officials announce OTS selections

    Air Force officials selected 11 enlisted airmen to trade in their stripes for gold bars after being chosen to attend Officer Training School, officials here announced July 23.Air Force Recruiting Service officials conducted OTS Selection Board 0306, which met here May 13 to 16. The board considered

  • Coalition kills Saddam's sons in 'fierce gun battle'

    Saddam Hussein's sons Qusay and Uday were killed today in a "fierce gun battle," U.S. Army Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez, announced at a news briefing in Baghdad.The commander of U.S. forces in Iraq said that based on a "walk-in tip," elements of the 101st Airborne Division, Special Forces and Air Force

  • AF announces major selections

    More than 2,200 Air Force officers were selected for major by the 2003A promotion board, officials announced July 22. The board was held at the Air Force Personnel Center here May 5. Board officials considered 3,036 captains for promotion in the line, judge advocate general, chaplain, medical

  • Airman wounded in ambush

    Getting ambushed and shot will not stop a Tactical Air Control Party airman from going back to war.Tech. Sgt. Kevin Whalen was one three people wounded when their convoy was ambushed July 19 about 30 miles north of here.Whalen's job is to call in close-air support for soldiers on the ground. He is

  • Air Force cyclist overcomes injuries

    On July 20, 2002, Capt. Matt Stanley was hit by a vehicle while cycling down highway near Del Rio, Texas. One year later, Stanley will celebrate recovering from serious injuries by cycling 500 miles across Iowa.Stanley, a T-6 Texan II instructor pilot here, is taking part in the Register’s Annual

  • Medical boards not always career-enders

    Airmen may think that being medically "boarded" means an end to a military career, but that is not always the case, according to medical officials at the Air Force Personnel Center here.While the goal of the medical-review system is to maintain a fit and vital force, officials say the Air Force does

  • Mars rovers using AFRL batteries

    As the Mars exploration rovers "Spirit" and "Opportunity" race toward the Red Planet, part of the Air Force Research Laboratory is soaring with them.The two rovers, expected to touch down and explore opposite sides of Mars in early 2004, are powered by rechargeable lithium-ion batteries researched

  • Civilian career brief now online

    Air Force civilians now have the ability to view their own career information online from any Internet-connected computer, according to Air Force Personnel Center officials here.The virtual Civilian Career Brief offers information that might help in career planning like current position data, pay

  • AF Marathon offers new race options

    Air Force Marathon officials will add two new options to this year’s Sept. 20 race. Besides the full-marathon and marathon-team races, this year’s event features a 13.1-mile half marathon and a 5km (3.1 mile) race. The half-marathon race will be on a loop-back course that will share the start and

  • News subscription service available

    Air Force Link, the Air Force’s premier Web site, has launched a new subscriptions management page. From this Web page, people can manage their subscriptions to a variety of news and information services delivered via e-mail.The Air Force News Agency offers free subscriptions, delivered directly to

  • 200,000 parents receive pins

    Your Guardians of Freedom, the Air Force’s grass-roots outreach information and recognition program, has touched the lives of more than 200,000 parents of airmen, a Pentagon official has announced.The program began in 2002 as a way for Air Force leaders to personally recognize the employers of

  • Wilford Hall plays part in cancer study

    Wilford Hall Medical Center researchers were involved in the recent study on the drug finasteride’s ability to prevent prostate cancer. Wilford Hall was the largest study site, providing roughly 10 percent of the participant population, for the seven-year, nationwide study named the Prostate Cancer

  • Ganci airmen rebuild children's playground

    About 40 children from the nearby Kyrgyzstan Tuberculosis Research Institute are smiling more broadly since airmen from here completed a playground.More than 68 airmen here put the finishing touches on the playground and dedicated it to the children June 30.The initial idea for the project started

  • EOD experts keep assessors safe

    Finding a bomb that accurately struck an Iraqi target but did not go “bang” is not a good thing, according to combined weapons effectiveness assessment team officials. They said unexploded ordnance is not good because it is a weapon that did not perform as intended. It is also a danger for both

  • Team testing hazardous-waste detection

    Three organizations here are testing and demonstrating what could be the future of buried hazardous-waste detection, ultimately improving the Air Force's compliance with Department of Defense and Environmental Protection Agency regulations.Officials from the NASA Dryden Flight Research Center are

  • Software streamlines travel process

    A new software program being tested by defense travel system officials will make arranging, paying and reimbursing official government travel a speedy, seamless and almost paperless process, according to officials.A software program, called the "Enhanced Jefferson," is transforming the way the

  • Linguists speak for team

    Targeteers and engineers are obvious choices for a weapons-assessment team. However, often Arab linguists are the first to speak to the Iraqis about what happened, according to officials.Linguists have been integral as the Combined Weapons Effectiveness Assessment Team travels to different impact

  • Smallpox vaccine side effects ‘rare’

    Mass smallpox vaccinations can be conducted safely with "very low" rates of serious adverse effects, the Defense Department's senior medical official said June 25.The military will continue with its vaccination program because the smallpox bioterror threat remains, said Dr. William Winkenwerder,

  • 900 face involuntary retraining

    More than 900 airmen may be involuntarily moved to shortage career skills starting July 7, according to Air Force Personnel Center officials here.Although 450 airmen volunteered to change career fields during the initial phase of this year’s noncommissioned officer retraining program, it was not

  • Hyperbaric laboratory earns accreditation

    Global health and safety received a much-needed shot in the arm recently when a U.S. Air Force School of Aerospace Medicine organization here became the first nationally accredited Department of Defense hyperbaric facility, according to officials.The school’s hyperbaric medicine division, also known

  • AF tries reducing deployment discrepancies

    Today’s Air Force is expeditionary, and all airmen should be prepared to deploy to support military operations worldwide, according to Maj. Gen. Timothy A. Peppe.The majority of airmen arriving in an area of responsibility are ready to accomplish their mission, however, nearly 10 percent report for

  • LULAC honors airman, service

    A weeklong League of United Latin American Citizens 2003 Convention ended here June 20 with a tribute to a fallen airman and the presentation of a community outreach award to the Air Force.The organization honored Airman 1st Class Raymond Losano, 24, who was killed in a firefight in Afghanistan on

  • Bush says U.S. facing down remnants of Iraqi regime

    U.S. military personnel are facing down the remnants of the Hussein regime even as coalition personnel continue to search for Iraqi weapons of mass destruction, President Bush said in his weekly radio address June 21. Bush said American military personnel are making life more secure for Iraqis, and

  • Photographers capture bomb damage in Iraq

    Master Sgt. Michael Best has taken photographs for 28 years. The past 20 years, he has made his living taking photos for the Air Force.But on a sunny, sultry day in mid-June in Iraq’s capital city, he is looking for more than just photos. He is looking for snipers.“I’m sure the force-protection

  • FAST encourages minority students to fly

    The Air Force’s Flight Awareness Summer Training orientation program encourages ROTC cadets in minority-based college and university programs to investigate careers in aviation.Twenty-two cadets enrolled in the three-week program at Delaware State University attended the FAST forum at Dover Air

  • Team assessing bombing targets

    On June 15, the Combined Weapons Effectiveness Assessment Team visited a site targeted by coalition aircraft during Operation Iraqi Freedom. A bunker was buried underneath layers of soil and concrete, hiding more than 25 compartments used to shield parts of Saddam Hussein's regime. In the next

  • AEF Center improves ‘online’ site

    The Air and Space Expeditionary Force Center here recently launched an improved version of their Web site, “AEF Online,” to help airmen learn more about the AEF and provide information about deployments.“We’ve made the site more user-friendly and more pleasing to the eye. Our goal was to organize

  • Airman’s daughter opens for Lee Greenwood

    Six-year-old Jordyn Tabury opened a concert for country-music artist Lee Greenwood during a military appreciation day concert at Six Flags in Agawam, Mass., on June 14.Jordyn sang “God Bless the USA” to more than 1,000 people at the concert. She is the daughter of Staff Sgt. Peter and Bernadette

  • Plan in motion to bring support troops home

    When the Air Force deployed its fighting forces for Operation Iraqi Freedom, a substantial portion of that contingent, about 65 percent, came from the installations and logistics community. This included civil engineers, services, supply, transportation and maintenance troops and airmen from the

  • Exercise gives warfighters’ perspective

    Thirty-eight Air Force Research Laboratory scientists and engineers traveled to Fort Drum, N.Y., May 31 to June 13 for Phoenix Warrior 2003.This annual exercise is tailored to show new technologies to the warfighting community and expose laboratory scientists and engineers to an operational

  • Online registration, voting expands

    A Department of Defense voting experiment in the 2000 presidential elections that allowed military and overseas voters to cast their ballots through the Internet will expand in 2004.Beginning this fall, Federal Voting Assistance Program officials hope to get as many as 100,000 military members --

  • Team assessing OIF air component effectiveness

    A team of nearly 100 experts in a variety of fields began traveling in Iraq on June 8 to visit up to 500 impact points targeted by coalition air component forces during Operation Iraqi Freedom.A portion of the Combined Weapons Effectiveness Assessment Team, or CWEAT, visited sites in Iraq earlier in

  • Technical orders a mouse-click away

    Well-thumbed-through volumes of technical orders are going the way of quill pens and ink pots here as a growing number of workers are using a browser-based TO library.Two years in the making, the library puts the latest technical orders a mouse-click away from each of the 10,000 or so mechanics at

  • Time to modernize civilian personnel

    The "time is here and now" to modernize Defense Department personnel practices with changes to the civil service system, said David S. C. Chu, undersecretary of defense for personnel and readiness, during a Pentagon briefing June 10.In a step that will transform the way the DOD does business, Chu

  • On-site trainers saving time, money

    Seven Air Education and Training Command instructors will bring a Robins initiative to life soon that not only saves the government thousands of dollars, it allows 3,000 additional depot technicians to be trained annually.The program, also being implemented at Air Force Materiel Command air

  • International students build more than language skills

    In today’s world of international relations, building coalitions is important. For a group of international military students here, the term “building” recently took on a much different meaning. Rather than building a geopolitical relationship with their fellow students from other countries, these

  • Airmen capture Iraqi republican guardsman

    Three air traffic control radar controllers were surprised June 9 when they found a member of Saddam Hussein’s republican guard hiding in an abandoned building by their radar site at the international airport here.While patrolling their site, Airman 1st Class Richard Mansure, deployed from the 305th

  • Americans can join support team

    "Uncle Sam Wants You" is a familiar recruiting slogan to generations of Americans. But in this case, it is an invitation for all Americans to sign up for a different kind of military operation.Operation Tribute to Freedom, a Defense Department initiative, is a way for Americans to show their

  • U-2 pilot receiving Kolligian trophy

    Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. John P. Jumper will present Maj. Jeffrey Olesen, a U-2 Dragon Lady pilot, with the 2002 Koren Kolligian Jr. Trophy during a June 13 ceremony at the Pentagon.Olesen, assistant director of operations for the 1st Reconnaissance Squadron here, will receive the award for

  • Rumsfeld clarifies civilian-workforce proposal

    Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld cleared up some misconceptions about the proposed Department of Defense civilian personnel system during testimony before the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee on June 4.Rumsfeld said that the current system is not flexible and agile enough to confront the

  • Airman gets wounded brother-in-law home

    Capt. Mike Lentz has always taken pride in his work. As a special-assignment airlift-missions planner at Air Mobility Command's Tanker Airlift Control Center here, Lentz coordinates airlift for dignitaries such as the president, secretary of defense and other high-profile individuals.The importance

  • Civilian-personnel system ‘not cutting it’

    The civilian-personnel system in the Defense Department "is not cutting it," said Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld on June 3.Rumsfeld, who spoke at the National Press Club, said that the department is handcuffed by its reliance on an antiquated personnel system. He called today's

  • AF simplifies travel-payment processing

    The Air Force has automated the process of filing travel-accrual payment requests for military travelers, making it available on the Virtual Military Personnel Flight Web page.“This should simplify the process not only for the traveler but also deployed and home-station financial services offices,”

  • War teaches major about Air Force

    Maj. Ken Sersun said he learned more about the Air Force mission during his first deployment as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom than at any point in his 16-year career.As chief of staff for the Air Support Operations Center at Camp Virginia, Kuwait, Sersun was one of nearly 150 airmen among 10,000

  • Work continues at Osan crash site

    Base workers labored throughout the night surveying debris from the F-16 Fighting Falcon that crashed near a gate at approximately 8 p.m. May 29. A pilot from the 36th Fighter Squadron was taking off on a training mission in the F-16 when the crash occurred. The aircraft was carrying inert bombs

  • Guardsmen open Baghdad facility

    The 379th Expeditionary Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron has opened a 10-bed mobile medical staging facility near the military flightline at Baghdad International Airport. Facility workers there conduct joint service, coalition and civilian air evacuation missions.In the field, after self-aid and

  • June issue of Citizen Airman available

    Thousands of mobilized reservists, along with hundreds of volunteers, performed critical roles supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. Since the beginning of the effort to liberate the Iraqi people, Air Force Reserve Command airmen have been involved in a variety of areas, including aeromedical

  • World War II Ironman's remains return home

    In the hallway of the 71st Fighter Squadron here hangs a large wooden board adorned with framed names of "Ironmen" pilots from World War II and Operation Desert Storm. One of those names is 1st Lt. Carl Hoenshell. Three Maltese crosses under his name indicate the number of enemy aircraft he shot

  • Now Showing: May 26 edition of Air Force Television News

    The end of an era in Turkey and Air Force ground support in the wake of the war against Iraq spotlight the latest edition of Air Force Television News. Senior Airman Israel Aviles reports on the end of Operation Northern Watch, a decade-old operation that enforced the northern no-fly zone over

  • Civil Air Patrol supports TOPOFF exercise

    May 12 to 16, Civil Air Patrol volunteers supported counterterrorism exercise TOPOFF 2 in Chicago and Seattle.The U.S. Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Department of State, in cooperation with federal, state, local and Canadian partners, sponsored the five-day, full-scale exercise and

  • State National Guards to combine headquarters

    Each state National Guard will combine its top three headquarters into one "joint force headquarters," said Army Lt. Gen. H. Steven Blum, the head of the National Guard Bureau.There are 162 headquarters units in the 54 state and territory National Guard entities and by Oct. 1, 108 of these will no

  • Airman sentenced in first OIF court-martial

    An airman first class from the 405th Expeditionary Munitions Squadron at a forward-deployed location in Southwest Asia pleaded and was found guilty May 18 of larceny and violation of a general lawful order. This was the first Air Force court-martial held at an Operation Iraqi Freedom deployed

  • U.S. 'committed to winning the peace' in Iraq, Feith says

    While there's much to do to assist the Iraqi people in the establishment of a free, democratic government of their choosing, the United States remains committed to achieving that goal, a senior DoD official told U.S. legislators today.In testimony on Capitol Hill today, Under Secretary of Defense

  • Love of flight unites Cochran, Yeager

    On the face of it, the long friendship between Jackie Cochran (Odlum) and Chuck Yeager seems a little improbable. Mixing two strong-willed overachievers, both of them whom were known public figures, is more like a formula for conflict.Yet the fighter pilot and the wealthy businesswoman had genuine

  • Unit puts the 'deploy' in 'deployment order'

    Television images of jets launching and bombs dropping during Operation Iraqi Freedom showed airmen doing what they are trained to do. What most viewers did not see were the people responsible for getting the jets there to put bombs on targets and patrol the sky.The Air Combat Command Air

  • Pilot tours with his ‘Dream Machine’

    Air Force Reserve Command’s recruiting service has teamed up with a veteran F-16 Fighting Falcon pilot and aerobatic performer to increase command awareness and attract young people interested in aviation.Maj. Ed Hamill is a private contractor in civilian life. He owns and operates the Air Force

  • 90-year-old veteran delivers

    A Depression-era work ethic, plus some faith and stubbornness, keeps fueling Martin "Mike" Mikulski who is in his 63rd year of service to his country. Mikulski, 90, has spent most weekdays for the last 24 years volunteering his time."What the hell am I gonna do at home? Watch TV?" Mike says in a

  • Scams target military families, e-mail users

    Although the federal tax filing season ended April 15, the Internal Revenue Service continues to see isolated instances of new tax scams.Two new schemes target families of those serving in the armed forces and e-mail users. In both schemes, people represent themselves as being from the IRS.The IRS

  • CENTCOM's Gen. Franks: 'Iraq's best days are yet to come'

    Fifty-two days after President Bush gave the go-ahead for military action in Iraq, the Army general who led the campaign stood in the Pentagon today and spoke of the mission's successes. "Today, the Iraqi people no longer live in fear of a regime of Saddam Hussein," Gen. Tommy Franks, commander of

  • Guard, Reserve leaders address retention

    The top generals of the Air Force’s reserve components told members of the Senate they are concerned about retention in the coming years.Lt. Gen. Daniel James III, director of the Air National Guard, and Lt. Gen. James E. Sherrard III, chief of Air Force Reserve, met with members of the Senate

  • SECAF talks to students

    The Air Force’s top civilian spoke to an eighth-grade history class here May 7 about leadership, his career, the service and the war in Iraq.During the event, Secretary of the Air Force Dr. James G. Roche answered questions from the Northern Bethesda Middle School students on topics ranging from his

  • The faces behind the faces on the 'most wanted' deck

    The faces of Saddam Hussein's defeated regime on the now-famous "most wanted" card deck have become ever familiar with more than 1 million decks printed and sold.The faces of the cards' creators, however, were a mystery, until now, that is.Enter Army Staff Sgt. Shawn Mahoney, 31, and Sgt. Scott