2024 USAF & USSF Almanac: Leaders

When 2nd Lt. Madison Marsh became the first ever active service member crowned Miss America on Jan. 14, top Air Force officials recognized a rare opportunity to reach women and girls who otherwise might not consider military service as an option.

Four Russian warplanes entered the Air Defense Identification Zone off the coast of Alaska on Dec. 18, North American Aerospace Defense Command announced—the first such incident in three months. 

Outgoing Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall thinks accelerating the Collaborative Combat Aircraft program will be his biggest legacy, as they will be "transformative" of how the service fights.

Airmen from the 31st Fighter Wing at Aviano Air Base, Italy, flew their last mission in an HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopter on Dec. 18, becoming the latest unit across the Air Force to transition to the new HH-60W Jolly Green II chopper. 

An effort at Cannon Air Force Base, N.M., to bring in medical specialists from afar seems to be paying off, with families driving less and requesting fewer travel vouchers to access care.

China's air force is advancing quickly, and while it has not yet pulled even with the U.S. Air Force, it's moving in that direction, according to the Pentagon's annual China military power report.

Seven C-130 airlifters from five countries lined up for an “elephant walk” on Guam and then flew alongside each other Dec. 14 to cap off Operation Christmas Drop. Every year, USAF and its allies drop thousands of pounds of food, clothes, medical supplies, fishing gear, and toys on remote Pacific islands, where…

The People’s Republic of China has improved its ability to project power globally despite corruption purges and a shrinking economy, the Pentagon’s annual report card on the Chinese military says. That includes a growing nuclear arsenal that added 100 new warheads in the last year.

The Air Force recently expanded its waiver tolerances for asthma, food allergies, and hearing loss. The move should bring in between 600 and 1,000 more recruits a year, though they would be restricted from certain jobs or duty stations.