The Pentagon released the names of two Air Force Office of Special Investigations special agents killed in Iraq June 5—TSgt. Ryan A. Balmer, 33, and SSgt. Matthew J. Kuglics, 25. The two were traveling in a convoy struck by an...

The Senate Armed Services Committee thinks the Air Force needs to reconsider its position on fee-for-service aerial refueling, seeing it as a low cost way to quickly replace capability provided by elderly KC-135 tankers. Roxana Tiron of The Hill reports that the committee report on the 2008 defense authorization bill, awaiting action in the full Senate, gives “strong directive language” to run a pilot program to demonstrate fee-for-service capability. The Navy already uses contract tanking from Omega Air, which expressed interest in competing for a share of the Air Force’s aerial refueling business. As early as 2002, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), chief architect of the effort that killed the Boeing tanker lease deal and exposed the Darleen Druyun affair, wanted the service to consider the fee-for-service option. However, Air Force officials have maintained such an arrangement wouldn’t suit operational requirements. The final request for proposal for the KC-X tanker replacement program doesn’t consider fee-for-service.

Coming off of her less-than-enthusiastic comments last month on the program’s performance, the Air Force’s top civilian acquisition official yesterday slammed Lockheed Martin’s Joint Air-to-Surface-Standoff Missile program—saying recent test failures may prevent its certification. Speaking to reporters at the Pentagon...

While JASSM looks endangered (see above), other programs that suffered Nunn-McCurdy breaches in the last round of select acquisition reports seem better off. As promised, the Air Force this week has provided answers to basic questions about the future fiscal...

The Noncommissioned Officer Academy at McGuire AFB, N.J., has closed, and more academies will follow, Col. John Bowley, commander of the College for Enlisted Professional Military Education, told the Daily Report via telephone from Maxwell AFB, Ala., yesterday. They are...

Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco plans to ask the state legislature to grant the $50 million Bossier City officials believe they need to entice the Air Force to locate its new Cyber Command in Louisiana, reports the Shreveport Times. The money...

The Pentagon’s top acquisition official, Ken Krieg, on Wednesday announced his intention to leave his post, effective July 20 or upon confirmation of his successor, whichever should come first. Krieg, who has been the acquisition czar since June 2005, plans...

US airmen and Royal Australian Air Force members have finished their “computer game”—the first part of exercise Talisman Saber 2007—at Hickam AFB, Hawaii. The flying portion of the exercise takes place in two weeks in Cambra, Australia. When Col. Michael...

A reporter in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, asked US Defense Secretary Robert Gates whether the US would alter the agreement with the Kyrgyz government for use of Manas Air Base, given the “negative mood against the placement of the coalition air base...

Under the category of things missed, we report that the Air Force Research Lab’s Directed Energy Directorate at Kirtland AFB, N.M., last month received the Air Force’s Modeling and Simulation Experimentation Award for 2006. A team of five (leader Rudy...

The Air Force has put $103 million toward replacing a 53-year-old runway at its premier research and development test facility, Edwards AFB, Calif. The project got underway last week with a groundbreaking ceremony.

June 4, 2007 Sortie Type OIF OEF OIF/OEF Total ISR 17 11 28 CAS/Armed Recon 63 39 102 Airlift 132 132 Air refueling 46 46 Total 80 50 178 308 OIF=Operation Iraqi Freedom OEF=Operation Enduring Freedom ISR=Intelligence-surveillance-reconnaissance Airlift includes Horn...