The DOD-industry team working on the Airborne Laser recently fired low-power surrogate lasers from within the modified Boeing 747-400F ABL aircraft, proving that the team could align the various critical components of the Lockheed Martin beam control/fire control system. Boeing...

Those words indicate the belief by Maj. Gen. Richard Lewis, USAF’s F-22 program executive officer, that the F-22A is an ideal candidate for a much-in-dispute multiyear funding approach. The Senate apparently agrees but, at last word, the House is not...

Ultimately the Air Force wants more than the 183 new F-22 stealth fighters that Administration budgeteers say it can afford. Those 183 will outfit seven squadrons, and the F-22 program executive officer, Maj. Gen. Richard Lewis, says the service is...

Remember when Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld pulled an about face last year and decided to save the C-130J program from cancellation? The DOD Inspector General, in a recently released audit report, now says that the Air Force provided bum data...

Air Force Lt. Gen. Henry Obering, head of the Missile Defense Agency, told reporters last week that he is “very confident” that the nation’s fledgling ballistic missile defense system could shoot down the long-range ballistic missile North Korea appears on...

The New World of Fighter Helmets: The 412th Test Wing at Edwards AFB, Calif., recently completed their evaluation of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter’s new helmet, which is a step beyond today’s heads-up display. The F-35 helmet carries its own...

Dragon Lady’s New Cockpit: Modernization of the U-2 Dragon Lady is proceeding to keep the high-flying reconnaissance viable until 2011 or later, depending upon whether you ask the Air Force or Congress. One of the Block 20 versions, a U-2S,...

The Standard Takes on the Times: Two articles posted on the Weekly Standard Web site excoriate the New York Times for its latest national security revelation—a June 23 front page article on the Administration’s efforts to follow the al Qaeda...

The Missile Defense Agency and the Navy have completed a successful “hit to kill” missile defense test off Kauai, Hawaii, launching a Standard Missile-3 from an Aegis-class cruiser, USS Shiloh, on June 22. The test was the seventh successful intercept...

Good News from VA?: Veterans Affairs plans to open 25 new community-based clinics in 17 states and American Samoa. The 25 will join the VA’s 700 other clinics and 156 hospitals. (Click here to see list of states and locales.)...

Going Civilian a Bit Premature: According to the Deseret Morning News, the Air Force Audit Agency has concluded that the civilian security guards hired by the Air Force shortly after 9/11 to help relieve airmen from working entry stations at...

Airmen with the 407th Expeditionary Security Forces Squadron at Ali Base, Iraq, found themselves in a somewhat unique situation—indoctrinating US Army soldiers in force protection measures. The 407th ESFS airmen spent about a month “refreshing [the soldiers] skills and letting them know some specifics” about protecting Ali, TSgt. Scott Morris, the unit’s lead trainer, told the Ali Times. Some 164 soldiers of the 528th Quartermaster Company in July will take over the mission of patrolling in and outside the base perimeter. Army SSgt. Tusi Leuluai praised the airmen, saying it was his third opportunity to work with Air Force security forces. He added, “They know their stuff and are always on top of their game.”

SSgt. Israel del Toro Jr., a Tactical Air Control Party operator in Afghanistan when he was severely wounded, received a Purple Heart from Gen. Michael Moseley, Air Force Chief of Staff, during a ceremony at Brooke Army Medical Center, Ft....

We have written about some of the efforts of airmen in conjunction with what’s termed provincial reconstruction teams, now Air Force journalist MSgt. Orville Desjarlais Jr. provides a concise history of their creation and USAF’s entry. As he recounts, PRTs...

June 23-25, 2006 Sortie Type OIF OEF OIF/OEF Total ISR 41 20 61 CAS/Armed Recon 140 85 225 Airlift 470 470 Air refueling 120 120 Total 181 105 590 876 OIF=Operation Iraqi Freedom OEF=Operation Enduring Freedom ISR=Intelligence-surveillance-reconnaissance