Daily Report

The F-22s at JB Langley-Eustis, Va., and JB Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, are flying again, officials at both locations told the Daily Report Wednesday. Both bases temporarily grounded their Raptor fleets last week after two pilots at Langley-Eustis experienced hypoxia-like symptoms during...

The Air Force's first Advanced Extremely High Frequency military communications satellite, AEHF-1, arrived at its intended operational position in geosynchronous orbit, completing a 14-month journey, announced USAF space officials Tuesday. The satellite reached its orbital perch on Monday, they said. "I am extremely proud of the entire AEHF team for its ability to apply engineering excellence, superior teamwork, and remarkable creativity to accomplish this very important milestone," said Dave Madden, director of the Military Satellite Communications office at Los Angeles AFB, Calif. AEHF-1's trek was made more difficult when the thrusters meant to propel the satellite to its destined spot malfunctioned shortly after the satellite reached space in August 2010. That forced the Air Force and its industry partners to devise an alternate orbit-raising plan using different thrusters on the spacecraft. They were able to execute this plan, while retaining the satellite's 14 years of required mission life, according to the USAF officials. Next up for AEHF-1 are some four months of on-orbit checkout and testing before Air Force satellite operators assume command authority for the spacecraft sometime in early 2012. (Los Angeles release)

An F-15C that took off from Nellis AFB, Nev., crashed in a remote area roughly 115 miles north of Las Vegas, according to base officials. The piloted ejected and sustained no injuries in the Oct. 24 mishap, they said. A...

Members of Air Force Reserve Command’s 445th Airlift Wing at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio, held a farewell ceremony for the unit’s C-5A transports. The wing is ending its C-5 mission and shedding its 10 C-5As in order to operate nine C-17s....

The plan to upgrade aging Taiwanese F-16 fighters has cleared the 30-day congressional review, although the United States and Taiwan have not yet signed the formal letter of acceptance for the deal, reported Bloomberg. House Foreign Affairs Committee spokesman Brad...

The Air Force is interested in using remotely piloted aircraft fitted with radar receivers in concert with E-3 AWACS aircraft for enhanced air surveillance capability, according to a recent Air Force Research Lab notice to industry. Under this concept, the...

A C-17 aircrew from JB Lewis-McChord, Wash., flew the second leg of a harrowing mission to evacuate a researcher in urgent need of medical attention from the Amundsen-Scott South Station at the South Pole. A ski-equipped Turbo DC-3 flew the...

Air Force Academy cadets will track space debris under an $800,000 grant that the institution received, reported the Colorado Springs Business Journal. The grant will allow the academy’s Center for Space Situational Awareness Research to develop a series of small,...

Technicians fired the solid rocket motors of a Minuteman III first stage at contractor Alliant Techsystems’ test complex in Promontory, Utah, announced Minuteman prime contractor Northrop Grumman. The quality-assurance test, which is part of USAF’s Minuteman solid rocket motor warm...

A pair of Russian air force TU-95 strategic bombers breached NATO airspace, triggering a scramble of alliance fighters from Britain’s Royal Air Force. Typhoon fighters on quick-reaction alert at RAF Leuchars, Scotland, launched to intercept and identify the bombers— codenamed...