Lt. Col. Dan Swayne surpassed 4,000 flight hours in the cockpit of the F-16 on Jan. 14 during a training mission. The feat makes the 42-year-old Swayne, deputy chief of standardization and evaluation for 9th Air Force at Shaw AFB, S.C., only the second Air Force active duty Viper pilot and 23rd F-16 pilot in the world to reach this milestone. “It reinforces I’m blessed with health, have a supportive family, and fly a great plane,” Swayne said of his achievement. He began flying the F-16 after completing undergraduate pilot training in 1988. He reached the 3,000-hour milestone six years ago. (USAF report by Capt. Amy Hutchisson)
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth vowed to undertake far-reaching reforms on the way the U.S. military buys weapons, promising a sweeping overhaul of the way the Defense Department determines requirements, handles the acquisition process, and tests its kit. The fundamental goal, which Hegseth underscored in a 1-hour and 10-minute speech…
