U.S. AIR FORCE NEWS

  • Contingency response team stands down after last shuttle support alert

    An audience of millions watched the last launch of the space shuttle Atlantis from Kennedy Space Center, Fla., July 8. The nearly 650 mobility Airmen of the 621st Contingency Response Wing here, however, saw a different finale -- an end to years of waiting for a call they thankfully never received.

  • Officials announce Outstanding Airmen of the Year

    Air Force officials recently selected the service's top enlisted members, naming the 12 Outstanding Airmen of the Year for 2011. An Air Force selection board at the Air Force Personnel Center considered 35 nominees who represented major commands, direct reporting units, field operating agencies and

  • Services deliver 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' repeal input

    Officials from all of the services and combatant commands have provided their input to the Defense Department in advance of the repeal of the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" law that bans gays from serving openly in the military, a Pentagon spokesman said here July 13.The input includes progress on training

  • Sensor network detects nuclear blasts worldwide

    At any time of the day or night, on any day of the year, if a nuclear device explodes anywhere on Earth, a Defense Department network established in 1947 will know about it.That was the year Army Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower directed the Army Air Corps to develop such a capability, and the U.S. Atomic

  • Airmen can help feds feed families

    During the 2011 Feds Feed Families food drive campaign, Airmen can help feed those in need.The campaign runs through Aug. 31."This is the first time the federal agencies have come together as one team to support the drive," said Ellen Nelson, the executive director of the Alamo Federal Executive

  • C-130 heats up for new decon test, evaluation at Little Rock

    A retired, ground-instructional C-130 Hercules is undergoing tests to determine how heat and humidity affect the decontamination process for an aircraft.The tests, which run through August, use bacillus thuringiensis, a commercially-available organic insecticide, to simulate a biological agent. Base

  • Balancing Reserve force discussed at Commander and Spouse Forum

    Air Force Reserve wing commanders and their spouses attended the annual Air Force Reserve Commander and Spouse forum here July 6 to 8 to gain increased awareness of the needs of Citizen Airmen and their families.Attendees engaged with Lt. Gen. Charles E. Stenner Jr., the chief of Air Force Reserve

  • Senior leaders visit Campus for Families of the Fallen

    Army Brig. Gen. Leodis T. Jennings, special assistant to the deputy chief of staff G-8; Marine Gen. James E. Cartwright, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; and Dr. Jill Biden, wife of Vice President Joe Biden, listen as Army Sgt. 1st Class James S. Carroll, a casualty assistance officer,

  • Weapons load competition showcases Airmen's precision, excellence

    Airmen in the 20th Fighter Wing weapons standardization unit held their quarterly Weapons Load Crew of the Quarter competition here July 8.Load crewmembers from Shaw's three fighter squadrons, the 55th "Shooters," the 77th "Gamblers" and the 79th "Tigers," participated in the competition to find out

  • Joint exercise hones capabilities for real-world missions

    Soldiers and Airmen teamed up in a simulated deployed environment at Mackall Army Airfield approximately ten miles south of Pinehurst, N.C., in support of the Army's 82nd Airborne Division's joint operational access exercise from June 23 to 27. More than 100 Airmen from the 615th Contingency