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U.S. Air Force News

  • Civil Air Patrol joins total force ‘Airmen’

    When conducting missions for the Air Force as the official Air Force auxiliary, the Civil Air Patrol is now included in the Air Force’s definition of the total force. CAP has provided 74 years of support to emergency services, aerospace education and cadet programs.

  • Hurricane Hunters to fly Tropical Storm Erika

    The Air Force Reserve Hurricane Hunters are operating out of Homestead Air Reserve Base, Florida, flying their state-of-the-art WC-130J Super Hercules into Tropical Storm Erika in support of the National Hurricane Center in Miami.

  • BLUE: Katrina, 10 years later

    Ten years ago, the Airmen of Keesler Air Force Base, Mississippi, faced one of the greatest tests of the American spirit as Hurricane Katrina ravaged the Gulf Coast. Where there were once hopes and dreams, Katrina left devastation and destruction. But through the wreckage of it all, the survivors

  • AF Week in Photos

    This week's photos feature Airmen from around the globe involved in activities supporting expeditionary operations and defending America. This weekly feature showcases the men and women of the Air Force.

  • SecAF, CSAF, CMSAF present new "little blue book"

    Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee James, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark A. Welsh III and Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force James A. Cody delivered the initial handout of the pamphlet, “America’s Air Force: A Profession of Arms,” Aug. 27 to the Air Force’s newest Airmen at Airmen’s Week.

  • Arming the RPAs

    Airmen from the 62nd Expeditionary Reconnaissance Squadron provide every munition that is loaded onto an MQ-1B Predator or MQ-9 Reaper at Kandahar Airfield; without them, the RPAs wouldn’t be able to provide combat airpower in Afghanistan.

  • 3rd AF commander charts path to organizational success

    In the 9th grade he made up his mind.Lt. Gen. Timothy M. Ray, the 3rd Air Force and 17th Expeditionary Air Force commander, had dreams of flying his whole life, and at the end of his freshman year of high school, determined the U.S. Air Force Academy would make his dream a reality.

  • Guardsman brings diverse background to Bagram’s mission

    It isn’t every day you come across someone who has been a Soldier, Sailor and Airman, but then again, Tech. Sgt. Russell McLamb isn’t your everyday service member.McLamb’s uniqueness isn’t just that he has served in three different services; but he has also served in all three of the service’s

  • SecAF speaks on acquisition, partnerships at Hanscom

    Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee James discussed her top priorities with Airmen and state officials while emphasizing the importance of the acquisition base and its partnerships during a visit to Hanscom Air Force Base Aug. 20-21.

  • Air Force extends SAPR services to AF civilians

    The Air Force released a policy memo today allowing Air Force civilian employees who are victims of sexual assault to file restricted and unrestricted reports with their installation's sexual assault response coordinator.

  • Airmen experience multinational Red Flag-Alaska

    A 16-foot wooden table stretches between aircrew lockers and cabinets. A red toolbox sits at one end of the table. Helmets, oxygen masks and parachutes are within sight. The room is temporarily housing members with 374th Operations Support Squadron aircrew flight equipment for the duration of Red

  • Reapers, Predators on the prowl in Afghanistan

    Airmen assigned to the 62nd Expeditionary Reconnaissance Squadron provide world-class close air support and intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance in the Afghanistan area of operations. They complete this mission by maintaining, launching and recovering all MQ-1B Predators and MQ-9 Reapers in

  • US Airman recognized as 'hero' in Paris

    U.S. Ambassador to France, Jane D. Hartley, recognized Airman 1st Class Spencer Stone for his actions in saving countless lives during a terrorist attack aboard a train headed toward Paris Aug. 21.

  • Mobility Airmen recover radiological material from Mexico

    Headquarters Air Mobility Command, in close partnership with the Department of Energy's National Nuclear Security Administration, recently executed a C-17 Globemaster III mission to repatriate three Husman irradiators containing radioactive material from Mexico to the U.S. for final disposition.

  • Air Force Global Strike Command commander visits USSTRATCOM

    Gen. Robin Rand, the Air Force Global Strike Command commander, met with. Navy Adm. Cecil D. Haney, the U.S. Strategic Command commander, other senior USSTRATCOM leaders and subject matter experts to discuss a variety of mission-related issues during his visit to Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska,

  • AF Week in Photos

    This week's photos feature Airmen from around the globe involved in activities supporting expeditionary operations and defending America. This weekly feature showcases the men and women of the Air Force.

  • AF adopts new dragon

    Lt. Gen. Bill Bender, the Air Force chief information officer, and Maj. Gen. Martin Whelan, the Air Force director of future operations, have partnered to increase awareness of the importance of operations security and cybersecurity to protect the Air Force mission, personnel and their families.

  • Pilot chases Olympic dreams

    Capt. Daniel Castle, a 349th Air Refueling Squadron pilot, is one of five Airmen selected throughout the Air Force to participate in the World Class Athlete Program, which allows service members of all branches to train as their primary duty.

  • 45 years on alert: Minot conducts Minuteman III test launch

    The 91st Missile Wing completed an operational test launch of an unarmed LGM-30G Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, Aug. 19, continuing its mission of providing strategic deterrence for the U.S. and their allies. The launch fell on the 45th

  • Whiteman B-2s, Airmen maintain readiness in Guam

    About 225 Airmen and three B-2 Spirits from Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri, deployed to Andersen AFB, Guam, Aug. 7 to conduct familiarization training activities in the Indo-Asia-Pacific region.

  • Greatest generation honored during wreath laying, AF band concert

    As the sun began to set over the National Capitol Region, several hundred people gathered at the Air Force Memorial with the District of Columbia-city landscape as the backdrop to witness a wreath-laying event, followed by a concert performed by the United States Air Force Band Aug. 14.

  • RED HORSE: A legacy of leaving it better than how they found it

    RED HORSE is a self-sustaining, mobile, heavy construction squadron capable of rapid response and independent operations in remote, high-threat environments worldwide. They were activated in 1966 as the Air Force’s combat construction team. Today, the 557th Expeditionary RED HORSE Squadron carries

  • Making every dollar count through Airmen Powered by Innovation

    The Air Force has initiated the Make Every Dollar Count program, aimed at creating a culture focused on minimizing costs, harnessing efficiencies and redefining Air Force business paradigms. Currently, the MEDC portfolio consists of 13 Headquarters Air Force-level programs and 26 major

  • From the Academy gridiron to the courtroom

    Capt. Tyler Weeks, a 460th Space Wing Staff Judge Advocate intern, played football for the U.S. Air Force Academy during his four years there and recently spent time at Buckley Air Force Base’s judge advocate office on his way to becoming a judge advocate general.

  • Motivated by education, opportunity: Airman finds second home with AF

    Many words are used to describe the United States; some call it the land of plenty, freedom or equality, but at least one Airman regards it as the land of opportunity.Airman 1st Class Bin Ma, a 20th Comptroller Squadron financial services technician, departed Wuhan, China, in 2008 to start his

  • Meet the Airmen of Wake Island

    About 1,500 miles east of Guam, in the middle of nowhere in the Mid-Pacific, lies the small coral limestone atoll of Wake Island. Ahead of Guam by about two hours, a select group of four Airmen here are the first Americans to turn the calendar page every day.

  • RPAs prove vital in fight against ISIL

    From August 2014 to August 2015, the 432nd Wing has directly supported Operation Inherent Resolve, a U.S. Central Command and partner nation's campaign to conduct targeted airstrikes in Iraq and Syria as part of the comprehensive strategy to degrade and defeat the Islamic State of Iraq and the

  • 9th CMSAF laid to rest

    “If you've met Chief Binnicker, you've met an icon -- a hero, a legend," said Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force, James A. Cody. Cody said these words as he delivered the eulogy for former Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force James C. Binnicker at the Fort Meyer post chapel in Arlington, Virginia,

  • Sorties across the stratosphere

    The enemy should fear what it can’t see. At high altitudes toward the edge of space, the U-2S is invisible to the naked eye, transmitting critical intelligence to the warfighters below.

  • 25 years on the hunt

    The 55th Wing's personnel and its RC-135V/W Rivet Joint hit 25 years of continuous deployment to U.S. Central Command's area of responsibility Aug. 9. What started out as a single-ship response to Iraq's invasion of Kuwait on Aug. 2, 1990, has now turned into what is believed to be the longest

  • Fairchild HAZMAT team assists local responders with chemical leak

    Twenty-six Airmen from Fairchild Air Force Base assisted Spokane County agencies in responding to a toxic gas leak in Spokane Aug. 12 that resulted in the hospitalization of at least four people, two of whom were in critical condition, and at least 17 others who were downwind of the plume.

  • AF Week in Photos

    This week's photos feature Airmen from around the globe involved in activities supporting expeditionary operations and defending America. This weekly feature showcases the men and women of the Air Force.

  • 63 years later: Columbus supports MIA ceremony

    Twenty honor guardsmen from Columbus Air Force Base and four T-38 Talons supported a missing in action ceremony Aug. 10 for a Mississippi Airman, exactly 63 years after his aircraft crashed.

  • SecAF gains perspective of Beale's ISR mission

    Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee James visited Beale Air Force Base to get an up-close view of the high-altitude intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance mission Aug. 10-12.

  • Keeping the buff young: Nondestructive inspection

    Like a radiologist who can see fractures without using a scalpel, there are Airmen who can find deficiencies in the B-52 Stratofortress’s bones to proactively ensure the aircraft’s structural integrity.

  • AMC welcomes new commander

    Air Mobility Command changed leaders Aug. 11, as Gen. Carlton D. Everhart II assumed command from Gen. Darren W. McDew during a 10 a.m. ceremony at Scott Air Force Base, Illinois.

  • Flying high: Strike Eagle pilot reaches elite milestone

    For F-15E Strike Eagle aircrew at the 4th Fighter Wing, flying through the skies is a part of their lifestyle. However, for Lt. Col. Paul Hibbard, a 333rd Fighter Squadron instructor pilot, the clouds are almost like a second home.

  • Airmen enable Marines in Iraq

    Marines, Soldiers, Sailors and Airmen work around the clock to sustain and improve the Task Force Al Taqaddum advise and assist site at Al Taqaddum, Iraq. Each service and section plays an important role in ensuring the success of this mission, part of Operation Inherent Resolve.

  • AF welcomes new vice chief of staff

    The Air Force welcomed an Airman to the rank of four-star general and announced the appointment of the new Air Force vice chief of staff during a ceremony at Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling, Washington, D.C., Aug. 6.

  • SARCs hone skills at annual refresher course

    The Air Force Sexual Assault Prevention and Response office recently concluded a five-day annual refresher course for nearly 130 Air Force sexual assault response coordinators at the National Conference Center in Leesburg, Virginia, Aug. 3-7.

  • Kenya native makes best of AF opportunities

    Staff Sgt. Johnson Njenga was born and raised in Kenya and hasn't seen his immediate family in two years. For a family as close-knit as his, this can be heartbreaking, but the opportunities the U.S. provides and his love for the Air Force keep him here, serving as the 21st Medical Squadron Family

  • Can’t spell test without TES

    More than 60 Air Mobility Command Test and Evaluation Squadron Airmen and civilians -- many of whom are former pilots and maintainers -- use their aircrew backgrounds to update and advance aircraft components in safe and innovative ways.

  • McChord Airman to be honored as hero

    Senior Airman Joshua Calhoun, a 62nd Maintenance Squadron precision measurement equipment laboratory journeyman, will be recognized as a hero during the American Red Cross Northwest Region 2015 annual Heroes Luncheon for risking his own life while rescuing a surfer who got stranded on a rocky cliff

  • World War II Airman's remains identified

    The remains of an Airman missing since World War II, have been identified and are being returned to his family for burial with full military honors, said the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency in a Defense Department news release issued Aug. 6.

  • Air Force upgrades 100-year-old technology

    The implementation of a new simulator, the GYRO Integrated Physiological Trainer II, into Specialized Undergraduate Pilot Training, will allows students to receive spatial disorientation training in a realistic platform before ever entering a real aircraft.

  • AF Week in Photos

    This week's photos feature Airmen from around the globe involved in activities supporting expeditionary operations and defending America. This weekly feature showcases the men and women of the Air Force.

  • CSAF listens to Airmen, discusses nuclear enterprise mission

    Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark A Welsh III visited three Air Force Global Strike Command bases to listen to Airmen of all ranks who support the Global Strike mission on a daily basis, while addressing the importance of the nuclear enterprise and its future.

  • New chief of Air Force Safety takes command

    Maj. Gen. Andrew M. Mueller assumed the duties of Air Force chief of safety, Headquarters Air Force, in Washington, D.C., July 24. In that capacity, he also serves as the commander of the Air Force Safety Center at Kirtland Air Force Base.

  • TACPs control skies over Guam for joint training

    To practice their skills, tactical air control party Airmen assigned to the 3rd Air Support Operations Squadron from Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, recently made the long journey to Guam to train with a variety of units from Joint Region Marianas.

  • Not your average wingman

    Every day as the sun rises above the horizon, Yokota Air Base's defenders are already hard at work keeping the base safe. Their day begins when they are assigned a patrol car, protective equipment and their partner. Just like in civilian law enforcement, military patrolmen place their lives in their

  • AF Global Strike Command establishes school for its best, brightest

    The Cold War ended in 1991, and with it, a comprehensive knowledge of the nation's deterrence capability. The link between strategic deterrence and technical competence faded away, with Airmen often gaining expertise in other areas, according to Air Force Global Strike Command staff. This shortage

  • Jamming the enemy with joint integration

    Leaving the flight deck of the EA-6B Prowler behind for a few years, Marine Corps Capt. Jonathon Leach from Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, North Carolina, joins the Desert Lightning Team.

  • Eye in the sky, RPA Airmen in the Red Flag fight

    The sun beats down on the dry Nevada desert, bringing a smell of fuel that fills the air. Engines begin roaring to life as the Airmen of the 432nd Wing prepare to support Red Flag 15-3 from July 13-31.

  • Senior master sergeant evaluations to be on new EPR form

    Senior master sergeant enlisted performance reports, which closed out July 31, will be accomplished on the newly published Air Force Form 911, the EPR for master sergeant through senior master sergeant, which was made available July 31 on the e-Publishing website.

  • Spencer reflects on 44-year career

    In the early 1970s, America was at a crossroads. The Vietnam War raged on, seemingly with no end in sight, and many Americans felt forced to choose to either support the administration or protest the conflict, which left many families across the nation bitterly divided.

  • Roll Call: 'This is your Air Force'

    The Air Force senior enlisted Airman released the latest installment of Roll Call, urging Airmen to follow the example of the ninth Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force James Binnicker, who passed away March 21. Binnicker will be laid to rest Aug. 14 at Arlington National Cemetery, Virginia.

  • Dover Airmen survive land, water training

    There are only two survival, evasion, resistance and escape specialists assigned to the 436th Operations Support Squadron at Dover Air Force Base, Delaware, but they are responsible for providing survival training to more than 1,000 aircrew members, including aircrews from the Air National Guard

  • AF Week in Photos

    This week's photos feature Airmen from around the globe involved in activities supporting expeditionary operations and defending America. This weekly feature showcases the men and women of the Air Force.

  • Rand takes command of AF Global Strike Command

    Gen. Robin Rand took command of Air Force Global Strike Command during a ceremony at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana, July 28, becoming the newest leader of the organization responsible for the nation's force of ICBMs and nuclear-capable bombers.

  • Innovative Airmen recognized by AF vice chief of staff

    Air Force Vice Chief of Staff Gen. Larry O. Spencer presented the inaugural General Larry O. Spencer Innovation Awards July 23 at the Pentagon, to Airmen who made the most significant contributions to saving Air Force financial and manpower resources this year.

  • Going the distance

    Chief Master Sgt. Geoff Weimer, the 5th Bomb Wing command chief, ran 52 miles on the McAdoo Sports and Fitness Center outdoor track at Minot Air Force Base, July 24, to support the Air Force Enlisted Village and Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force Scholarship Fund.

  • Through the glass: Vet looks back

    The heritage center at Travis Air Force Base has many pieces of military, history rich with old war stories. One piece, a bullet-riddled B-24 Liberator windshield, tells the story of a man from a small town who went on to fight in World War II and gave more than 40 years of service to his country.

  • AF Academy joins in nationwide concussion study

    Hundreds of basic cadets lined up at the U.S. Air Force Academy July 13 to help experts learn more about head trauma. Cadets are taking part in a three-year, $30 million collaboration between the Defense Department and the NCAA to study concussions. Eighteen universities in the U.S. and the military

  • Seventh WGS satellite launch successful after weather delay

    Twenty-five dedicated Space and Missile Systems Center personnel put off their mad dash to jam the streets of Los Angeles, and instead, gathered in the Gordon Conference Center at the Schriever Space Complex, California, on July 23. These active-duty and civilian employees observed the culmination

  • Jill Biden visits military families at Kadena

    Dr. Jill Biden, the wife of Vice President Joe Biden, visited Kadena Air Base July 23 to show support for military families and spread awareness for the Joining Forces Initiative.

  • AF Week in Photos

    This week's photos feature Airmen from around the globe involved in activities supporting expeditionary operations and defending America. This weekly feature showcases the men and women of the Air Force.

  • Guard couple juggles military life, share command

    On July 16 an Air National Guard officer took command of the Air Force Officer Training School's Detachment 12 from another guardsman. While that may not seem strange, what is unusual is that the former and new commanders have 23 years of history together.Lt. Col. Loralie Rasmussen assumed command

  • Quest for perfection: Airman strives for flawless execution

    It’s a sport in which a fraction of an inch could mean the difference between a first place finish or dropping 30 spots. Competitive rifle shooting requires patience, accuracy and control. Lt. Col. Mark Gould started the sport more than 23 years ago and he has been pulling the trigger ever since.

  • CHIEFchat: Cody addresses new EPR form, Course 15

    Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force James A. Cody addressed several topics during his latest CHIEFchat, including the new enlisted performance report and Course 15, at the Defense Media Activity on Fort George G. Meade, Maryland.