The Air Force intends to identify new basing for tactical air control party and air liaison officer training since the current schoolhouse at Hurlburt Field, Fla., lacks the facilities to accommodate the increased demand for the specialties. Under the basing criteria, announced Wednesday, service officials will look at factors such as mission and training requirements, facilities and infrastructure, support capacity, environmental impacts, and cost, in identifying the candidate locations from the pool of Air Force and Army installations in the continental United States. “These criteria will help to ensure that all aspects for basing of this important training are considered,” said Kathleen Ferguson, USAF’s deputy assistant secretary for installations. Air Force officials anticipate releasing the list of candidate bases this summer. After that, a formal environmental impact analysis will begin and surrounding communities have the chance to provide input. (Randolph release)
President-elect Donald Trump has said he will nominate Pete Hegseth, a Fox News personality, as Secretary of Defense for Trump's second term. The choice rounds out most of the national security selections for the new administration.