December 2009

Vol. 92, No. 12

 
Highlights from the December 2009 Issue

The Testers from Tucson

The Air National Guard-Air Force Reserve Command Test Center, or “AATC,” seeks low-cost improvements for the whole force.

Chief Roy

The 16th Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force views stability as the enlisted force’s top goal.

Why the C-17 Has Lived On

Since 2007, DOD has been laboring mightily on a new mobility capability study. An explicit goal of this study is to determine airlift needs in future years. The C-17 is the only long-range airlifter still in production, so one would...

Air Force World

F-16s Collide, Pilot Dies Capt. Nicholas Giglio, an F-16 pilot with the 77th Fighter Squadron at Shaw AFB, S.C., died Oct. 15 when his airplane collided with another F-16 from Shaw over the Atlantic Ocean about 40 miles east of...

Verbatim

Hard All the Time “In truth, it is, I think, accurate to observe that, as in Iraq in 2007, everything in Afghanistan is hard, and it is hard all the time.”—Army Gen. David H. Petraeus, commander, US Central Command, Times...

Hurricane

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The Conversion of John Keegan

“A Real Turning Point” John D. P. Keegan The Sunday TelegraphLondon June 6, 1999 FULL TEXT VERSION Operation Allied Force—NATO’s American-led, airpower-only war against Serbia—opened March 24,1999. Within days, claims of the failure of airpower gushed forth from many critics—among...

Letters

The Sixth Generation Fighter Since the Air Force bought its first F-100, every fighter that has entered the inventory has had the ability to fly faster than the speed of sound [“The Sixth Generation Fighter,” October, p. 38]. It has...

AFA National Report

The ICBM’s 50th In October, Air Force Association Chairman of the Board Joseph E. Sutter took part in anniversary events at F. E. Warren Air Force Base in Cheyenne, Wyo., to mark the passage of 50 years since ICBMs went...

Frame by Frame

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Complete Contents of December 2009 PDF
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The F-35 Dice Roll
US combat aviation hinges-worryingly, to some-on this lone $300 billion fighter project.
By Robert S. Dudney

Airlift Upsurge
USAF's mobility force is the glue that holds together US forces in Afghanistan.
By Marc V. Schanz

Roadmap for Robotics
USAF expects unmanned aircraft to play a huge role in future warfare.
By Michael W. Isherwood

Risky Business
USAF's ancient refuelers are operating worldwide at a punishing pace.
By John A. Tirpak

The Testers From Tucson
The Air National Guard-Air Force Reserve Command Test Center, or "AATC," seeks low-cost improvements for the whole force.
By Jim Haseltine

A Specter Haunts the Carrier
The growing threat posed by China, not to mention political woes, has shaken up the US Navy.
By Rebecca Grant

A Small War in Panama
The main Air Force contribution to Operation Just Cause was the airlift, which doubled the number of combat troops in the country.
By John T. Correll

Chief Roy
The 16th Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force views stability as the enlisted force's top goal.
By Peter Grier

Commander and Chief
FDR and Hap Arnold frequently clashed, but their partnership brought about the mighty Army Air Forces
By Herman S. Wolk

Silver Bullet Blunder
Imperial Japan committed a startling number of airpower stupidities.
By Walter J. Boyne

Departments


Letters

Washington Watch

Air Force World

Index to Advertisers

Senior Staff Changes

Chart Page

Issue Brief

Verbatim

Flashback

AFA National Report

Unit Reunions

Keeper File

AFA National Leaders

Airpower Classics