President Bush has nominated Air Force Lt. Gen. Lance L. Smith for appointment to the rank of general and assignment as commander of US Joint Forces Command, headquartered at Norfolk, Va. Smith currently serves as deputy commander for US Central Command. If confirmed by the Senate, Smith would replace Adm. Edmund Giambastiani, who is now serving as the Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The JFCOM position has a NATO responsibility, as well, and NATO already has agreed to name Smith as Supreme Allied Commander Transformation.
When Lt. Col. Dustin Johnson was ordered to deploy to the Middle East last year, he and his fellow F-22 Raptor pilots prepared for an unusual challenge. As the U.S.’s premier air superiority fighter, the F-22 was designed to take on advanced enemy aircraft, capable of maneuvering stealthily and cruising at…