Brig. Gen. Margaret Woodward on Monday assumed command of 17th Air Force (Air Forces Africa) during a change-of-command ceremony at Ramstein AB, Germany. Woodward was appointed for the position back in April. She replaces Maj. Gen. Ron Ladnier who led 17th AF since October 2008 and is set to officially retire on September 1. Woodward is slated to receive a second star soon as the Senate in May approved her promotion to the grade of major general. (Ramstein photo caption by A1C Brea Miller)
A new Air Force plan for how many fighters it needs in the next decade marks a sharp upturn from what it thought it needed just seven years ago. But analysts worry that the aspirational plan now in Congress' hands doesn’t make a tight enough connection to national strategy.


