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  • Defense weather satellites provide environmental support

    Officials from the Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center here said they are on track to launch a third satellite in November that will join two others already in orbit essential in tracking global weather conditions and providing data for distribution to Department of Defense and civilian

  • New commander takes Air Force Recruiting reins

    Air Force Recruiting Service welcomed its new commander during a change of command ceremony here July 17. Brig. Gen. Suzanne Vautrinot took command from Brig. Gen. Robertus Remkes, who headed AFRS since February 2004. In her new role, General Vautrinot is the first female to lead Air Force

  • Rocket technology testing reaches 100-percent operation

    America's only staged combustion liquid booster rocket engine now in development marked an important milestone July 12 at NASA's Stennis Space Center near Bay St. Louis, Miss. The engine reached steady-state 100-percent operation, demonstrating mainstage performance for the first time.The engine

  • 45th Space Wing supports successful shuttle mission

    The 45th Space Wing provided continued support of the Space Shuttle Discovery from its launch on July 4 to its landing at Kennedy Space Center, Fla., on July 17.The Department of Defense Manned Spaceflight Support staff operated an around-the-clock Support Operations Center for STS-121 at Patrick

  • AFA looking for former Outstanding Airmen of the Year

    The Air Force Association is looking for all former recipients of the 12 Outstanding Airmen of the Year award program. This year marks the 50th anniversary of the award, which has been presented to more than 700 Airmen.The AFA will honor all former award winners at the Air Force anniversary dinner

  • Cameras enhance forecasting of sun-generated storms

    Every 100-plus minutes, while orbiting approximately 50 miles above the Earth onboard the Coriolis satellite, the Solar Mass Ejection Imager experiment scans the darkness of space-seeking, sun-generated magnetic clouds of particles intent on striking the planet. Since becoming operational in January

  • Oregon-based KC-135 unit begins drawdown

    The first KC-135 Stratotanker aircraft from the 939th Air Refueling Wing departs Portland International Airport today, marking the beginning of a change in mission for the Air Force Reserve unit.Under the 2005 Base Realignment and Closure process, all eight of the refueling aircraft and 900

  • RIMPAC 2006: Perfecting air operations

    Airmen and Sailors working in the Pacific Air Operations Center here are getting unique command and control training during the Rim of the Pacific exercise, known as RIMPAC 2006. Seven Pacific Rim nations and the United Kingdom are participating with the United States in the major maritime exercise,

  • Uniform board to release updates to AFI

    An update to Air Force Instruction 36-2903, Air Force Uniform Dress and Appearance, will soon be released, said Air Force officials. A key feature of this updated instruction will be the return of heritage to the enlisted corps -- chevrons on the sleeves and circles around the U.S. insignia. "Over

  • AFMC leads ICE Breaker

    Three Air Force Materiel Command organizations will team up with six other Air Force agencies and three industry partners to participate in an ICE Breaker July 17 to 21. In this case, the ICE Breaker is not a social event. It refers to the Air Force Integrated Collaborative Environment. The Air

  • Program offers chance to work with foreign air force

    Officers from almost any specialty, and some NCOs, can have the opportunity to live and work as a foreign air force member through the Military Personnel Exchange Program, which allows nations to learn how other air forces operate. Maj. P.K. Carlton, currently serving as a Royal Air Force instructor

  • CENTAF releases airpower summary

    U.S. Central Command Air Forces officials have released the airpower summary for July 5. In Afghanistan July 4, Air Force A-10 Thunderbolt IIs and French Air Force M-2000s provided close-air support for coalition forces taking small arms fire from Taliban extremists in the vicinity of Deh Rawood.

  • Airmen are battlefield innovators

    Airmen are adapting to the battle space and an evolving enemy in Iraq and Afghanistan, said the commander of U.S. Central Command Air Forces. Lt. Gen. Gary North told Airmen here during a visit July 5, they are always ready to support ground commanders despite an increased operations tempo. "This

  • Air Force officials consolidate network ops

    Air Force officials have formally consolidated the service's network operations and created the Air Force Network Operations, or AFNETOPS, command structure at 8th Air Force here. The AFNETOPS, pronounced "AF Net Ops," Command stood up in a ceremony July 5.The move is part of a larger Air Force

  • C-17 deployment length, efficiency increase

    In a break from the past, C-17 Globemaster IIIs and Airmen supporting the aircraft are deploying to the theaters and operating from one location for an entire air and space expeditionary force rotation. Previously a squadron traveled to an area, flew 14-15 days, then returned home. About one-third

  • Space support key to warfighters

    Supporting warfighters on the ground is the overarching mission of everyone deployed to the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility. Carrying out this earthly mission from thousands of miles above the ground, though, is a responsibility coordinated by the Combined Air Operations Center here.

  • Command and control focus of new research project

    The Air Force Office of Scientific Research, in cooperation with Binghamton University in New York, has started funding a research project targeted at improving the strength and availability of command and control networks. The team, led by Dr. N. Eva Wu, professor in the department of electrical

  • New wing brings Air Force dominance to cyberspace

    The Air Force consolidated the responsibilities of its network operations security centers under one wing here today, giving it the advantage over America's enemies and achieving tactical dominance on the newest battlefront -- cyberspace.That took place when the 67th Information Operations Wing was

  • Detachment tracks space shuttle Discovery

    The 22nd Space Operations Squadron's Detachment 5 here is playing a pivotal role in the Discovery mission following its launch July 4 from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida -- one in which the shuttle does not launch if the detachment is not ready. "When the space shuttle launches and while it's

  • AFIT linked to past, future of America's space program

    The Air Force Institute of Technology, or AFIT, has long been involved with America's efforts in space. Its association began with the early test flights of the high-altitude research aircraft, the X-15, and has continued to NASA's "Return to Flight" Discovery space shuttle launch July 4.Col. Steve

  • Air Force stands up first network warfare wing

    Air Force officials will stand up the first network warfare wing here July 7 to better support the mission to "deliver sovereign options for the defense of the United States of America and its global interests -- to fly and fight in Air, Space and Cyberspace." The 67th Network Warfare Wing, formerly

  • 45th Space Wing supports shuttle launch

    The U.S. Air Force's 45th Space Wing provided Eastern Range support for NASA's launch of the space shuttle Discovery Tuesday. Discovery lifted off from the Kennedy Space Center at 2:38 p.m."Congratulations to the entire NASA, DOD and contractor launch team," said Brig. Gen. Susan Helms, 45th Space

  • Pacific Air Forces receives top safety honor

    Pacific Air Forces is the recipient of the Major General Benjamin D. Foulois Memorial Award in recognition for its flight safety program for the past year.The award was presented to the major command by members of the Order of Daedalians during a ceremony here July 1. To receive the annual flight

  • Academy grad named 2006 MWC male student-athlete

    U.S. Air Force Academy 2006 graduate Matt Karmondy was honored as the Mountain West Conference Male Student-Athlete of the Year. Established by the Mountain West Conference Joint Council in 1999, the award is the highest honor presented to a student-athlete by the league. The award is bestowed

  • CMSAF says farewell to Airmen

    In his latest "Chief's View," Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force Gerald R. Murray discusses his four-year tenure as the 14th top enlisted person and thanks Airmen for their contribution to the war on terrorism. "As I look toward retiring on June 30, I want to thank each of you for volunteering to

  • Pararescuemen train for space shuttle launch recovery

    Reservists from the 920th Rescue Wing here practiced techniques June 23 that may be used during a space shuttle launch recovery mission. The next shuttle launch is scheduled for July 1. Chief Master Sgt. Jeffrey Curl, Master Sgts. James Johnston, John Shiman, Alexander Abbey, and a new

  • Delta IV launch successful

    The first West Coast launch of Boeing's Delta IV evolved expendable launch vehicle was conducted here June 27. The rocket took off from Space Launch Complex-6 carrying a payload for the National Reconnaissance Office. The spacelift commander for this mission was Col. Jack Weinstein, 30th Space Wing

  • Former astronaut takes command of Air Force Space Command

    Gen. Kevin P. Chilton assumed command of Air Force Space Command in a ceremony here June 26, presided over by Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. T. Michael Moseley. Current and former national defense leaders, active and retired senior officers, community leaders and active-duty servicemembers gathered

  • Omaha Trophy winners announced

    The winners of the 2005 Omaha Trophy awards were announced by U.S. Strategic Command officials today.The results are as follows: -- Intercontinental Ballistic Missile Trophy: 90th Space Wing, F.E. Warren Air Force Base, Wyo.-- Strategic Aircraft Operations Trophy: 5th Bomb Wing, Minot AFB, N.D.--

  • Laughlin students keep air traffic controllers busy

    Just outside this small border town, with its low-key appearance and down-home lifestyle, Airmen control the Air Force's sixth busiest runway. Airmen of the 47th Operations Support Squadron's air traffic control complex at Laughlin Air Force Base, Texas, operate in a unique training environment.

  • F-22 excels at establishing air dominance

    Beginning with Lot 7 production of the F-22 Raptor, the Air Force hopes to enter into a cost-saving, multi-year procurement contract with the aircraft and engine manufacturer. According to Maj. Gen. Richard B.H. Lewis, Air Force executive officer for the F-22 program, a multi-year procurement

  • U-2s boast new, improved cockpit

    An improved U-2S Dragon Lady offering greater pilot awareness and improved safety arrived here June 14 as part of the Reconnaissance Avionics Modernization Program.The program's goal is to improve the maintainability and reliability of the aircraft."The Block 20 aircraft is a new, modern cockpit

  • Testers set sights on joint strike fighter

    Allowing a pilot to turn in any direction but still have access to information on the heads-up display at the front of the cockpit is the aim of testing here. Members of the 412th Test Wing completed a project June 20 to help evaluate a helmet-mounted display system for the F-35 joint strike

  • Delta II with satellite payload launched

    A joint government-industry team successfully launched the Micro-satellite Technology Experiment from here on Wednesday, June 21. The experiment is designed to support and enhance future U.S. space missions. MiTEx is a joint technology demonstration mission for the Defense Advanced Research Projects

  • Community at large benefits from space innovation

    In the midst of budget cuts and space program cost overruns, the Air Force has found a way to save taxpayers money and, at the same time, increase small satellite launch capability to its maximum potential. It’s called the Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle Secondary Payload Adapter, or ESPA, ring.

  • B-2s stay in shape with exercises

    The 393rd Expeditionary Bomb Squadron has spent the past three weeks refining the skills necessary to maintain the B-2 Spirit, one of the world’s most advanced weapon systems. During exercises Valiant Shield, continuing through June 23, and Northern Edge, which ran from June 5 to 16, B-2 aircrew

  • Balancing capability portfolios key to Air Force success

    Every day, news headlines tout successes of the U.S. military in Iraq and Afghanistan, but seldom make mention of Air Force contributions. Air Force Vice Chief of Staff Gen. John D. W. Corley told lawmakers and defense industry insiders on Capitol Hill June 14 that that lack of coverage doesn't mean

  • AFMC introduces 'Community of Practice' Web site

    The Air Force Materiel Command Inspector General is making business easier with a new Community of Practice, or CoP, Web site. The CoP allows IG team members to collaborate with each other at the home station and on the road, said Col. Henry Andrews Jr., inspector general.“It’s a better way

  • Northern Edge 2006 takes joint operations to next level

    Exercise Northern Edge 2006, Alaska's largest joint training exercise, concluded June 16.Nearly 5,000 Soldiers, Sailors, Marines and Airmen worked together against a simulated enemy for two weeks, destroying targets on land and in the sea, gaining control of the Alaskan sky and performing

  • Air Force names 12 Outstanding Airmen of the Year

    Air Force officials have selected the service's top enlisted members, naming the 12 Outstanding Airmen of the Year for 2006. An Air Force selection board at the Air Force Personnel Center here considered 33 nominees who represented major commands, direct reporting units, field operating agencies and

  • Smoke-free clinic encourages healthy lifestyle

    Encouraging healthy lifestyles is the focus of a new policy at the 36th Medical Group here.A no smoking policy is now in effect for everyone assigned to the 36th MDG while they are on its campus, including the parking spaces adjacent to the clinic. Signs are being erected to request visitors keep

  • Andersen prepares for Valiant Shield

    Air Force bombers, fighters, tankers and support aircraft from the Pacific theater are arriving and making preparations for Valiant Shield 2006. The U.S. Pacific Command exercise, which runs June 19 to 23, will be conducted in the vicinity of Guam. Valiant Shield focuses on integrated joint training

  • Scientific researchers review molecular dynamics

    The Air Force Office of Scientific Research here completed a periodic review of its molecular dynamics research program during an annual conference last week.More than 90 researchers and scientists attended the 2006 Contractors Meeting in Molecular Dynamics. Organizations represented included the

  • Minuteman III launch successful

    An unarmed Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile was launched from Launch Facility-04 on North Vandenberg at 1:22 a.m. today. The primary purpose of the launch was to assess and demonstrate the operational effectiveness of the Minuteman III weapon system. The missile’s three unarmed

  • Space institute begins advanced missile warning course

    The National Security Space Institute will conduct the first-of-its-kind missile warning advanced course here July 24. This 13-week course is designed to create experts in the missile warning and defense mission arena. The course will provide in-depth education on missile warning and defense with a

  • Research lab tests fuel-efficient, flying-wing aircraft

    A new aircraft with the potential to get up to 30 percent better fuel mileage because of its unique flying-wing shape is being tested by the Air Force Research Laboratory and industry partners. The prototype blended wing body, or BWB, aircraft is a modified, triangular-shaped aircraft configuration

  • Selective re-enlistment bonus changes for 14 specialties

    Air Force officials have announced changes to the selective re-enlistment bonus program. A message from Headquarters Air Force, dated May 24, 2006, indicated changes to the program for 14 Air Force Specialty Codes. Those changes follow a thorough review of the SRB program, and are part of the Air

  • Air Force recognizes judge advocates for excellence

    The office of the Judge Advocate General of the Air Force has announced the winners of the Judge Advocate General 2005 Annual Awards. Winners of the 2005 awards include: -- Kuhfeld Award for Outstanding Young Judge Advocate: Maj. Charles Plummer, staff judge advocate, 501st Combat Support Wing,

  • Intel Airmen experts at puzzle solving

    Predicting enemy actions in a combat zone like Iraq is like trying to put together a puzzle where not only the pieces rapidly change, but the overall picture changes moment by moment.At Ali Base, three members of the 407th Expeditionary Operations Support Squadron intelligence flight spend their day

  • Air Force announces annual Public Affairs Achievement Awards

    On behalf of Secretary of the Air Force Michael W. Wynne and Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. T. Michael Moseley, Col. Michelle Johnson, director of Public Affairs and deputy director of Strategic Communications here, announced the 2005 Public Affairs Achievement Awards.“My heartiest congratulations to

  • Air Force F-16 airstrike kills al-Zarqawi

    Two U.S. Air Force F-16C Fighting Falcons, supporting coalition actions in Operation Iraqi Freedom, dropped precision munitions near Baquba, Iraq, on June 7, killing al Qaida’s leader in Iraq, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi and other terrorists. The aircraft, assigned to U.S. Central Command Air Forces,

  • 2005 Annual Weather Award winners announced

    The winners of the Air Force Weather 2005 Annual Weather Awards have been announced, recognizing units and individuals throughout the weather community  as the best in their field. Col. John Murphy, acting director of the Air Force Weather Agency, said he was honored to announce the winners and

  • Missileers receive new computer capabilities

    Airmen who pull alert in ICBM launch control centers deep underground in remote locations around the country are virtually cut off from the outside world. Ensuring America’s intercontinental ballistic missile force is ready at a moment’s notice may be considered a lonely, isolated job with an

  • Force shaping necessary for AF budgetary management

    As Air Force officials continue to implement 2006 force shaping initiatives, they prepare for the majority of personnel reductions set for fiscal 2007. They plan to reduce the service's current size by 40,000 full time equivalent positions by 2011. This amounts to roughly 35,000 active duty

  • Summer 'Air and Space Power Journal' available

    The College for Aerospace Doctrine, Research and Education at Air University has published and distributed the Summer 2006 English edition of the Air Force's professional journal, "Air and Space Power Journal." The journal serves as an open forum for the presentation and stimulation of innovative

  • Predators provide eyes in the sky over Afghanistan

    What has a 50-foot wingspan, buzzes like a giant insect and can put an AGM-114 Hellfire missile through a window from 8,000 miles away?It is the Air Force’s MQ-1 Predator unmanned aerial vehicle, and it’s arguably one of the most requested assets in Operation Enduring Freedom, said Capt. Jonathan

  • Space command creates one focal point for networks

    On June 1, Air Force Space Command stood up a major command coordination center, or MCCC, creating a single focal point for all network systems across the command. All major commands are required by headquarters Air Force to consolidate their network operations and systems under an MCCC. Air Force

  • Air Force family members participate in national spelling bee

    Four Air Force families from around the world gathered here to support their children who were participating in the Scripps-Howard National Spelling Bee May 31 to June 1. These four families formed an unofficial team of support that came from their military connection and shared pride in their

  • Movie project transforms Holloman

    What do the Air Force’s first stealth fighter, a toy that has been around since the 1980s, and a director who loves big-budget, special effects-driven movies all have in common? The answer is the DreamWorks/Paramount Pictures project, "Transformers," being filmed here. On May 19, Col. David Moore,

  • Command and control a 24/7 operation

    The Combined Air Operations Center here, also known as the CAOC, is the command and control hub for all air operations within the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility. Staffed and monitored around-the-clock, the coalition professionals working in the CAOC can seamlessly perform command and

  • SPORT provides eyes for Edwards mission

    The room is dark. The only light comes from computer screens and monitors along with blinking lights on various machines. Seven people sit in front of monitors that project green dots and lines. It may look like this group is playing games in an arcade, but in reality they are playing a crucial role

  • Secretary Wynne expects Airmen to continue to excel

    While visiting various installations in the San Antonio area May 31 to June 2, Secretary of the Air Force Michael W. Wynne talked about the importance of core values, technology and training facing today’s Airmen and the Air Force. The secretary focused on what the Air Force expects from its Airmen

  • Reserve offers released lieutenants chance to serve

    Air Force lieutenants involuntarily separated as a result of force reductions have until Aug. 1 to join the Air Force Reserve to continue their military careers without a break in service. On May 10, the Air Force released the names of 884 lieutenants who are to be involuntarily separated because of

  • AFSO 21 crucial to achieving new vision

    Air Force Smart Operations for the 21st century will be crucial to achieving the 50th Space Wing’s new vision, said Col. John Hyten, wing commander. “If someone asks you how we can do things smarter, tell them AFSO 21 gives us free rein to cut through red tape,” Colonel Hyten said. “With AFSO 21, we

  • Launch of weather-tracking satellite successful

    The 45th Space Wing supported the successful launch of the NASA GOES-N, a weather satellite launched on a Delta IV booster May 24 from Space Launch Complex 37B here. The wing provided Eastern Range and launch base support to Boeing Launch Services, which provided the satellite and booster vehicle

  • Kenney Headquarters maximizes support to joint warfighters

    The Gen. George C. Kenney Headquarters reaches its one-year anniversary June 1. Known as KHQ, the headquarters staff commands air, space and information operations for joint forces throughout the Asia-Pacific region, excluding Korea. Consisting of three elements -- the Pacific Air Operations Center,

  • Air Force Services announces LeMay, Eubank winners

    Each year, the Air Force recognizes the best Services units by presenting the Gen. Curtis E. LeMay and the Maj. Gen. Eugene L. Eubank awards. The LeMay trophy recognizes the best unit in the large base category, bases with 6,000 or more military and civilians assigned. The Eubank trophy recognizes

  • Class of 2007 cadets learn their future Air Force jobs

    Some 1,000 junior class cadets learned May 19 what their future Air Force jobs will be, a full year ahead of their graduation date.Until recent changes to the personnel system, cadets waited until the fall semester of their senior year to learn their career assignments. Undergraduate pilot training

  • IT modernization: Leveraging the power of information

    Since January, the Air Force has been busy modernizing itself through the Secretary of the Air Force initiatives embodied in Air Force Smart Operations 21. The Air Force's communications and information community is part of that modernization effort. Their focus is on restructuring information

  • Technology improvements keep information flowing to warfighter

    During the recent Joint Expeditionary Force Experiment at Nellis Air Force Base, Nev., the Air Force demonstrated new technology that provides warfighters with greater connectivity and more timely information. During the exercise, the Air Force tested the Battlefield Airborne Communications Node.

  • New engine repair shop saves time, money

    Maintainers from the 386th Expeditionary Maintenance Group now have the capability to repair C-130 Hercules engines and propellers in Southwest Asia. This new capability has cut down repair time and is key to getting the aircraft back in the air performing the mission. In the past, if a propeller or

  • Pushing freight: ATOC moves cargo in, out of Ali quickly

    In a combat environment, speed and accuracy are key -- even more so when it comes to an aircraft.  And though most cargo aircraft are relatively agile when in the air, they are not while groundbound.One team’s mission here is to make sure those aircraft stay on the ground for as short a time as

  • AFIT team wins national case study competition

    A select panel of distinguished senior U.S. Department of State diplomats and executives yesterday chose four students from the Air Force Institute of Technology as the winners of its national case study competition. The team, consisting of Majs. Timothy Kirk, Ita Udoaka and Carolyn Wood

  • Transient alert provides Bagram its staying power

    Imagine parking hundreds of cars and trucks in a convenience store parking lot. Now imagine parking those cars if they were the size of C-17 Globemaster IIIs. That image makes the task facing the transient alert team at the 455th Air Expeditionary Wing here a little clearer. “It’s kind of like a

  • Air Force flexibility on display in Iraq and Afghanistan

    Air Force fighters no longer just swoop down from the sky to drop their deadly weapons in support of ground troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. Fighters equipped with special sensor pods, developed for more precise bombing, also are warning commanders and troops fighting on the ground about enemy

  • Thunderbirds perform 4,000th show

    The United States Air Force Air Demonstration Squadron, the Thunderbirds, performed their 4,000th air show May 13 at Robins Air Force Base, Ga. The show was the team's 14th of the 2006 season. “We perform about 70 air shows throughout the year, representing the 530,000 men and women in our Air

  • Next-generation radar to undergo testing aboard Proteus

    A smaller, next-generation radar that will improve the Global Hawk’s surveillance capacity will soon undergo testing aboard a Proteus aircraft here. The 851st Electronic Systems Group is preparing for a year-long test of the smaller version of the Multi-Platform Radar Technology Insertion Program,

  • Services squadron shows 'BEST' hospitality

    Since January, hundreds of prizes have been passed out at bingo games, dozens of entertainers have passed through and personal trainers have spent more than 1,000 hours helping people meet their fitness goals here. “But what I wish I knew more than anything,” said 1st Lt. Tyson Edwards, “is the

  • Red Flag-Alaska wraps up

    More than 84 aircraft and 1,500 Air Force active duty, Reserve, and National Guard Airmen here and at Elmendorf Air Force Base, Alaska, wrapped up the first Red Flag-Alaska, held April 24 through May 5. Until this year, the exercise had been known as Cope Thunder.Pilots, maintainers, weapons

  • Training programs welcome international interest

    Air Force officer and NCO training programs were showcased earlier this week when the commander of South Korea’s Education and Training Command visited schools here May 1 to 2. Lt. Gen. Youngha Lee of the Republic of South Korea Headquarters for Air Force Education and Training Command in Jinju met

  • Air Force names 2005 Mission Support Award winners

    The winners of the 2005 Mission Support Awards were announced May 2.The results are: PersonnelGen. Robert J. Dixon Personnel Award: Senior Master Sgt. Jimmy Jones, Randolph Air Force Base, Texas. Gen. Horace M. Wade Innovation Award: Tech. Sgt. Wendy Davis, Tyndall AFB, Fla. Gerrit D. Foster Jr.

  • International affairs career field opens for civilians

    The success of Air Force expeditionary air and space forces conducting global operations and fighting the war on terrorism relies heavily on international relationships. Building these critical relationships requires skilled, knowledgeable and experienced international affairs professionals. Air

  • Trackers watch for dangerous 'space junk'

    Roughly 15,000 miles above the Earth’s surface a communications satellite provides vital information to all branches of the U.S. military. It joins more than 9,000 other items in space that are tracked by the Ground-Based Electro-Optical Deep Space Surveillance System, known as GEODSS. There are

  • Collaborative tools assist initiatives during JEFX '06

    The Air Force Command and Control Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Center sponsored a new collaborative tool that was part of the Joint Expeditionary Force Experiment 2006 here. The Integrated Battlespace Collaborative Communications tool, known as IBC2, was tested over the new Tactical

  • Researchers focused on satellite energy storage

    An eight-person team at the Air Force Research Laboratory's Space Vehicles Directorate here believes their experiment will demonstrate the innovative technology of combined attitude control and energy storage on a satellite by the summer of 2007.The experiment consists of  three flywheels spinning

  • Delta II launch successful

    A Delta II rocket was launched from here today at 3:02 a.m. The rocket took off from Space Launch Complex 2 carrying NASA’s Cloud-Aerosol Lidar and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observations, or CALIPSO, and CloudSat satellites. The rocket carries the CloudSat and CALIPSO satellites into a 438-mile

  • Los Angeles AFB dedicates new Schriever Space Complex

    The Space and Missile Systems Center here officially dedicated its Schriever Space Complex April 24.“Welcome to our new home,” said Lt. Gen. Michael Hamel, SMC commander. “Today marks the beginning of a new chapter in the history of military space.” Originally called SAMS -- Systems Acquisition

  • Senior mentors advise JEFX leaders

    As Joint Expeditionary Force Experiment 2006 tests warfighting capabilities designed to fill capability gaps, three retired officers help senior leaders keep the experiment on track. Retired Lt. Gens. Joe Hurd, Mike Short and Chuck Heflebower are part of the Air Force chief of staff’s Operational

  • Combat balloon to improve communications

    Warfighters who depend on ground communications for mission success will soon have improved technology, thanks to a system currently under examination here at the 2006 Joint Expeditionary Force Experiment. Combat Skysat uses balloons to take advantage of untapped airspace and improve line-of-sight

  • Coalition forces integral part of JEFX 2006

    As military members continue to test future warfighting capabilities during Joint Expeditionary Force Experiment 2006, they do so in a multiservice, multinational environment. Because United States forces often fight wars with troops from other services and other countries, such is the case for JEFX

  • Experiment delivers battlespace awareness

    The Combined Air and Space Operations Center, or CAOC, houses the systems that provide the U.S. and its allies with critical warfighting information. Air Force Materiel Command's Electronic Systems Center, at Hanscom Air Force Base, Mass., delivers and manages those systems inside the CAOC, thus

  • Warfare flight works behind the scenes

    The hum of computer fans, the tapping of fingers on keyboards and the occasional ring of a telephone are all that are normally heard in this office. But don't let the quiet fool you -- the office staff is working to ensure that technological advances aren’t being used against the Air Force. The 8th

  • JEFX focuses on battle operations, communications

    The Theater Battle Operation Net-centric Environment and the Battlefield Airborne Communications Node -- known as TBONE and BACN -- are two of the initiatives being tested during the Joint Expeditionary Force Experiment 2006. The combined air operations center, or CAOC, is the experiment’s

  • NCO mentors through martial arts

    Once a gang member himself, an information manager with Detachment 2 of the 17th Test Squadron now uses kicks and punches to keep teenagers out of trouble. To his co-workers at Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Station, Colo., he is Staff Sgt. Dave Armstrong. To his students at the Hillside Community

  • Analysis brings information faster to warfighters

    Fusion for the Air and Space Operations Center is one of many important initiatives currently being tested here during Joint Expeditionary Force Experiment 2006.Intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance analysts are testing the Predictive Awareness and Network-Centric Analysis for Collaborative

  • Atlas V rocket successfully launches satellite

    The 45th Space Wing supported the successful launch of the Astra European telecommunications satellite on an Atlas V rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 here at 4:27 p.m. April 20. The wing provided Eastern Range and launch base support to Lockheed Martin and International Launch Services, who

  • CENTCOM’s command chief postures Airmen for long haul

    The command chief master sergeant of U.S. Central Command expressed the importance of deployed Airmen postured for a long war. Chief Master Sgt. Curt Brownhill said becoming a joint force, understanding the uniqueness of the enemy we’re fighting and working toward stability in CENTCOM’s area of

  • Main experiment under way for JEFX ’06

    After three spirals spanning five months, the main experiment for the Joint Expeditionary Force Experiment 2006 is finally under way here. JEFX combines live-fly, live-play ground and naval forces, simulation and technology insertions into a warfighting environment. This year, JEFX is assessing

  • Air Force Academy wins NSA Cyber Defense Exercise

    The National Security Agency announced today that the Air Force Academy is the winner of the agency’s 6th Annual Cyber Defense Exercise. The exercise was conducted April 10 to 14 here, at the NSA’s Maryland headquarters and the nation’s other military service academies. During the exercise,

  • All together now: Civil engineers team up for project

    Almost nothing changed on the outside of the 376th Air Expeditionary Wing headquarters here until the final week of the renovation. There was always something indicating work -- trenches, heavy machinery, dusty workers taking a quick break at the gazebo. But the metal exterior itself didn’t give any