President-elect Joe Biden will nominate retired Army Gen. Lloyd J. Austin III to be his Defense Secretary, the transition team announced Dec. 8. Austin, who left the military in 2016 as the four-star head of U.S. Central Command, would be the first-ever Black man to ...
The Pentagon has approved plans to draw down to 2,500 troops in Afghanistan, focusing on a smaller number of bases and continuing the advising and training role as well as the counterterrorism mission. “After 20 years, [and] two decades of consistent effort there, we’ve achieved ...
More than 110 Airmen from the Missouri Air National Guard's 139th Airlift Wing recently returned from a deployment to the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility. The troops, members of the 139th Operations and Maintenance Groups, as well as two of the wing's C-130s, were ...
Iraqi forces have shown their ability to maintain security, enabling the U.S. drawdown in the country despite increased attacks from Iranian proxies and an Islamic State group focused on rebuilding its caliphate, the head of U.S. forces in the region said Nov. 19. “The progress ...
F-16s and Airmen from Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany, deployed to the Middle East last week under a “dynamic force employment” concept aimed at quickly moving forces around the world. The Vipers, from the 480th Fighter Squadron, deployed Nov. 12 to Al-Dhafra Air Base, United Arab ...
Pentagon officials are slowly offering a clearer picture of the roles satellite and radar systems play in the joint fight, after U.S. Space Command launched anew last year as part of a massive revamp of military space resources and doctrine. SPACECOM boss Gen. James H. ...
F-35As and Airmen from the 421st Fighter Squadron returned home to Hill Air Force Base, Utah, within the past week after a six-month deployment for combat operations in the Middle East. The 421st was the third Hill squadron in a row to be tasked with ...
Approximately 120 Airmen from the 31st Fighter Wing’s 606th Air Control Squadron deployed to six undisclosed locations in Southwest Asia on Oct. 12, the 31st Fighter Wing confirmed to Air Force Magazine. During the deployment, which is slated to last about six months, these Airmen ...
Airmen and F-16s from Shaw Air Force Base, S.C., recently deployed to Prince Sultan Air Base, Saudi Arabia, the 20th Fighter Wing announced. While in the Middle East, the 77th Fighter Squadron and 77th Fighter Generation Squadron personnel will be tasked with generating combat air ...
The U.S. military plans to withdraw more than 2,000 troops from Iraq this month, leaving about 3,200 troops in the country to continue advising Iraqi forces and targeting the remnants of the Islamic State group. U.S. Central Command boss Gen. Kenneth F. McKenzie Jr., speaking ...
The Air Force on Aug. 20 revived 15th Air Force as its largest organization overseeing conventional weaponry, giving the World War II-era group new purpose for 21st-century warfare. Air Combat Command is shifting the fighter jets, battle management aircraft, strike drones, and search-and-rescue helicopters from ...
Air Force F-35As from Hill Air Force Base, Utah, have patrolled the skies of the Middle East continuously for the past 16 months. During the 34th Fighter Squadron's eight-month deployment, the squadron tested new tactics for the fifth-generation F-35A that will lay the groundwork for ...