Air Force CV-22 pilots and flight engineers got a taste of sea life recently when they made their first Osprey landings and take-offs from a Navy ship, the USS Bataan. The airmen—five pilots and three flight engineers—from the 8th Special Operations Squadron at Hurlburt Field, Fla., first practiced their shipboard procedures on dry land, reports Jamie Haig. Believe it or not, 8th SOS boss, Lt. Col. Ted Carallo said the real thing was easier than simulator training. The bigger challenge was getting the squadron’s and ship’s schedules to mesh. Carallo said he expects to train other squadron members sometime this fall. Air Force Special Operations Command is still working tactics for the new Osprey fleet and earlier this summer practiced with Navy SEALs.
From pararescuemen to paralegals, the Air Force is expanding bonus opportunities for Airmen in certain career fields who reenlist in 2025. The service expanded its Selective Retention Bonus to 89 Air Force Specialty Codes on Dec. 16. That’s up from 73 a year ago and 51 the year before that.