Airmen at the Fore:

Lt. Gen. Roger Brady, USAF’s top personnel officer, told attendees Tuesday at AFA’s Air & Space Conference in Washington that “there is no rear area of the battlefield today—we are all there.” To better prepare airmen for deployment to the battlefield, he said, all airmen now are being trained to carry, use, and maintain a gun, at all times. “Helping people stay alive is an important quality of life,” said Brady. The Air Force has extended basic military training for new recruits from 6.5 weeks to 8.5 weeks. And, before airmen deploy, they must go through a minimum of 19 hours of pre-deployment combat skills training.