Daily Report

Nov. 14, 2012

Pentagon IG To Investigate ISAF Commander

US Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta in a Nov. 12 statement said he has asked the Pentagon Inspector General to investigate USMC Gen. John R. Allen, currently serving as commander of the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan. Allen has...

No More Nukes? Talk to Pakistan

No More Nukes? Talk to Pakistan: The geopolitical preconditions for the global nuclear disarmament are so unlikely that policy-makers must assume nukes will remain part of the strategic calculus, according to former National Nuclear Security Administration Secretary Linton Brooks. For...

USAF Names QDR Director

The Air Force has selected Maj. Gen. Steven L. Kwast to serve as director for the next Air Force Quadrennial Defense Review, according to a Nov. 9 Pentagon release. Kwast currently serves as director of requirements at Air Combat Command,...

Hawaii Reaches Raptor IOC

According to a Nov. 9 announcement from the Hawaii National Guard, the F-22 Raptor force comprising the Hawaii Air National Guard’s 199th Fighter Squadron and Active Duty 19th FS at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam achieved initial operational capability last week....

Full-rate Production for Litening SE Pod

Northrop Grumman received a $71.5 million order from the Air Force to begin full-rate production of Litening SE targeting pods and spares, announced the company on Nov. 12. This contract award reflects Northrop Grumman’s “commitment to providing cutting-edge targeting pods”...

Original Tuskegee Airman Carter Dies

Retired Lt. Col. Herbert “Gene” Carter, a pilot with the original World War II-era 99th Pursuit Squadron Tuskegee Airmen, died Nov. 8 at East Alabama Medical Center in Opelika, Ala. He was 93. Carter flew 77 combat missions and 200...

USAF Pursues Plan to Move Eielson F-16s

According to a news report by the Fairbanks News-Miner, Alaskan officials are concerned by the Air Force’s decision to pursue a full environmental impact statement for the proposed transfer of an F-16 squadron from Eielson Air Force Base to Joint...

Panetta Staying Awhile?

Defense Secretary Leon Panetta quashed talk that he would quickly bail out on the second Obama Administration, telling reporters during a flight to Australia Nov. 12 that he believes he has a responsibility to deal with the current fiscal and...

Pentagon Eyes App Store for Military Tasks

US military personnel could soon start accessing military-oriented applications on their government BlackBerrys, iPhones, Android devices, and other mobile communications gear, according to Maj. Gen. Robert Wheeler, the Pentagon’s deputy chief information officer. He envisions a “military app store” possibly...

Leadership Shakeup at Lockheed Martin

David Petraeus, the now former CIA director, wasn’t the only executive in the national security/defense realm to fall from power last week due to sexual indiscretion. Indeed, Christopher Kubasik, slated to become Lockheed Martin’s CEO in January, resigned on Nov....

Saudis Request Super Herks

Saudis Request Super Herks: The Pentagon notified Congress of a $6.7 billion potential sale of 25 Super Hercules transport aircraft to Saudi Arabia, the Defense Security Cooperation Agency announced last Friday. Saudi Arabia requested the purchase 20 stretched C-130J-30 airlifters...

Three-Hundredth QF-4 Delivered

BAE Systems recently completed conversion of the 300th QF-4 Phantom II Full Scale Aerial Target for delivery to the Air Force, company officials stated in a release on Monday. Workers modified the former RF-4 Phantom recce variant with autonomous controls...