According to a Pentagon release, former U.S. Representative from New York John McHugh was sworn in Sept. 21 as the 21st Secretary of the Army. President Obama nominated McHugh for the post in June, and the Senate confirmed him Sept. 16. He was the ranking Republican on the House Armed Services Committee. The Army also now has a new undersecretary, Joseph Westphal, who was assistant secretary of the Army for Civil Work from 1998 to 2001 and served briefly as acting Secretary.
Fixing the Air Force’s chronic combat pilot shortage will require more aircraft in the fleet, more flying hours to squadron operations, and retaining more pilots within Reserve components, according to a new paper from AFA’s Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies.