The President has nominated Maj. Gen. Richard Newton III for promotion to lieutenant general as deputy chief of staff for manpower and personnel. • Space and Missile Systems Center at Los Angeles AFB, Calif., has dedicated the nine-foot-tall bronze statue of Gen. Bernard Schriever, considered the father of USAF’s space and missile program, that now stands in SMC’s courtyard. • The Defense Department selected as top maintenance units of the year two Air Force units—the 56th Maintenance Group at Luke AFB, Ariz., for large-size units and 1st Maintenance Squadron at Langley AFB, Va., for medium-size units. • A World War II-era P-38 has surfaced in the sand and water off Wales where it lay buried for 65 years after crash-landing, reports Associated Press; weather and tides have again buried the aircraft, but a historical preservations group and museums may try to salvage it next year. • Randolph AFB, Tex., is the site of a DOD test of an automated entry control system that will let common access card holders enter the base after a reader scans their card; it’s one of several test efforts to improve access but preserve security and will conclude early next year.
China thinks it will be able to invade Taiwan by 2027 and has developed a technology edge in many key areas—but it is artificial intelligence that may be the decisive factor should conflict erupt, Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall said.