The Space Force will soon start formally accepting Airmen’s applications but isn’t taking volunteers from services outside the Air Force just yet, officials clarified this week. During the month of May, Active-duty Air Force officers and enlisted members in existing space careers and certain other jobs can apply to join the Space Force. That includes the 16,000 or so military and civilian employees who previously worked for Air Force Space Command and now make up the bulk of the new service, but have not yet formally transferred in. Airmen in the 13S and 1C6 fields will start transferring into the Space Force on Sept. 1.

Chief of Staff Gen. David Goldfein said the Government Accountability Office's recent report blasting the service's centerpiece Advanced Battle Management System was based on old information and lacked insight into the system's secrets. He said he'd be happy to walk GAO's auditors through the classified aspects of the program so they, Congress, and other opinion-shapers can understand the importance of ABMS, which he said is moving at unprecedented speed.

A B-1B Lancer flew a 30-hour flight to train alongside USAF and Japanese fighters on April 22, the first bomber sortie in the Pacific since the Air Force ended the continuous bomber presence mission on April 17. The B-1, from Ellsworth Air Force Base, S.D., linked up with six USAF F-16s, seven Japan Air Self-Defense Force F-2s, and eight JASDF F-15s over the Draughon Range near Misawa Air Base before returning home. The mission was a joint U.S. Indo-Pacific Command and U.S. Strategic Command bomber task force mission, and marks the first time a B-1 has been in the region since early 2018.

Airmen and F-16s from the “Triple Nickel” returned to Aviano Air Base, Italy, from a six-month combat deployment to the Middle East—the first time a full unit returned from a deployment since the Defense Department ordered a restriction on movement because of COVID-19. The Airmen wore masks and had their temperatures checked once arriving at their home base. Now, they will be quarantined for about two weeks. The 555th Fighter Squadron deployed to southwest Asia in October on short notice amid tensions with Iran, arriving in theater 14 days after the order.

On March 23, the Air Force Association's Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies will host a virtual Nuclear Deterrence Series event featuring Scowcroft Group Principal Frank Miller. At a time when nuclear modernization programs are accelerating around the world, proposals to recapitalize the U.S. nuclear arsenal are at the forefront of debates over defense spending. Miller will share his insights into the prospects for U.S. nuclear modernization programs and the value of nuclear deterrence in today's competitive security environment. The think tank will post event video on its website and YouTube page after the live event.