Air Guard on “New” Hogs

The Maryland Air National Guard’s 175th Wing has been flying the newly upgraded A-10, the C model, in combat over Iraq for the past two months, the result of “a monumental effort,” says Lt. Col. Timothy Smith, commander of the...

The Air Force’s 40K Quandary

The Air Force plan to cut the force by 40,000 full-time equivalent spaces—proposed two years ago—has gone up and down but is now up again, apparently. Lt. Gen. Roger Brady, USAF’s deputy chief of staff for personnel, told a Capitol...

Seeking Satellite Control?

Fresh off a rebuff, of sorts, over its bid to claim executive agent status for higher flying unmanned aerial vehicles, the Air Force reportedly is seeking to lasso development, acquisition, and operational control over future military and national security satellite...

Down, but Not Out:

The commander of US Central Command Air Forces, Lt. Gen. Gary North, said in a statement that he worries “about the health of our aging fleet,” but the continued grounding of the F-15 fleet would not diminish airpower support to...

Flying into “Extinction”:

Before the latest F-15 crash (see above), Lt. Gen. Gary North said on a visit to one forward location in Southwest Asia that the Air Force is “flying our planes into extinction.” Air Force journalist SSgt. Phillip Butterfield took note...

Conferees Produce Spending Bill:

House and Senate conferees completed work on the 2008 defense appropriations bill, providing about $460 billion in spending authority. Rep. John Murtha, chairman of the defense panel of the House Appropriations Committee, said in a statement that the agreement “achieves...

US Completes its Probe, Brits Continue:

The Stars and Stripes reports that British officials say the US military has completed its review of the August friendly fire incident in which a bomb dropped by a USAF F-15E killed three British soldiers. The British Ministry of Defence...

Range OK in South Korea?:

According to a communiqué from the 39th Security Consultative Meeting between the US and South Korean defense leaders, Seoul has completed upgrading a training range needed by USAF units on the peninsula. The lack of suitable air training ranges prompted...

Air Sorties in the Global War on Terrorism

Nov. 5, 2007 Sortie Type OIF OEF OIF/OEF Total ISR 23 8 31 CAS/Armed Recon 48 24 72 Airlift 164 164 Air refueling 44 44 Total 71 32 208 311 OIF=Operation Iraqi Freedom OEF=Operation Enduring Freedom ISR=Intelligence-surveillance-reconnaissance Airlift includes Horn...