Now showing: May 24 edition of AFTV News

  • Published
SAN ANTONIO (AFPN) --  The affect of extended activations on Air Force reservists, Air National Guardsmen, their families and employers, spotlights the latest edition of Air Force Television News.

Tech. Sgt. Bill Scherer travels to Pennsylvania to profile Jillian Mentkewicz, a senior airman in the Air Force Reserve who is a scientist for a pharmaceutical giant in her civilian life. Meanwhile, Staff Sgt. Melissa Allan is in New Castle, Del., talking to a drug company employee and a school teacher. Both were affected by long activations and deployments. The stories show how the Airmen’s families and employers are adjusting to the call-ups following the 2001 terrorist attacks.

In Afghanistan, Master Sgt. Rick Sarchet travels with Air Force Office of Special Investigations agents as they uncover a weapons cache in a small village. Sergeant Sarchet’s story is an example of the OSI’s diverse role fighting terrorism in both Afghanistan and Iraq.

Tech. Sgt. Pachari Lutke goes to Patrick Air Force Base, Fla., to report on a small Air Force unit responsible for forecasting the weather at Cape Canaveral. Their forecasts determine whether space shuttle and other launches are a “go” or “no-go.”

Tech. Sgt. Joy Josephson-Spann is at Fairchild AFB, Wash., examining work to refurbish KC-135 Stratotankers, giving the four-decade-old aircraft a new lease on life.

Staff Sgt. Kevin Dennison visits a rehabilitation project in California that uses buildings that were once a part of March AFB to help former servicemembers who are now homeless. Sergeant Dennison talks to project workers, many of whom once spent their lives on the streets, as well as former homeless people who are using the program to get back on their feet.

Finally, Sergeants Lutke and Josephson-Spann offer their own version of Animal Planet. Sergeant Josephson-Spann is at Edwards AFB, Calif., with the story of three children who have written a book about their pet donkey, Sweet Pea. Sergeant Lutke is in Florida to report on Poncho, a multicostumed Chihuahua used as part of the Air Force pet therapy program for sick children.

Air Force Television News is a biweekly production of Air Force News Service. It is distributed on videotape to more than 3,000 military and civilian outlets worldwide, and is seen on more than 700 cable TV outlets nationwide. It is also available on the Internet at www.af.mil and can be seen regularly on The Pentagon Channel. The program is closed captioned. Viewers can comment on the program by sending an e-mail to aftvnews@afnews.af.mil.