Daily Report

Dec. 18, 2013

Helicopter Crash Kills Six US Troops in Afghanistan

Six US service members were killed when their helicopter crashed in southern Afghanistan Tuesday; one American survived, reported Stars and Stripes. The cause of the incident is under investigation; however, according to initial reports there was no enemy activity in...

Senate Invokes Cloture, Clears Way for Budget Vote

The Senate voted across party lines Tuesday to invoke cloture on a two-year funding compromise, clearing the way for a vote on the bill as early as today. The two-year funding compromise, which was hashed out between Senate Budget Committee...

Contract Funds Two More GPS III Satellites

The Air Force awarded $200 million in contract options to Lockheed Martin to complete the fifth and sixth Global Positioning System III satellites, which are currently on the production floor at the company’s GPS III processing facility in Denver, announced...

ACC Commander Speaks with Airmen

Air Combat Command chief Gen. Mike Hostage spoke to airmen at JB Langley-Eustis, Va., about top issues within the service, including the budget, force management programs, sexual assault prevention and safety. “This sequestration business, the grounding of squadrons, shutting down...

On Your Radar

Fairings have shown up on F-35 fighters; two ogival bumps on the top rear, forward of each vertical fin, and two on the bottom, one either side, just forward of the tailhook housing. Lockheed Martin test pilot Bill Gigliotti told...

Turkish Aerospace Delivers First F-35 Fuselage

Northrop Grumman F-35 subcontractor Turkish Aerospace delivered the first Lightning II center fuselage built on its line in Ankara, Turkey, last week, announced Northrop Grumman. The fuselage—destined to become a US Air Force F-35A—will now be shipped to prime contractor...

Minuteman Aloft

Air Force Global Strike Command successfully launched an inert Minuteman III Intercontinental Ballistic Missile from Vandenberg AFB, Calif., Tuesday, the command announced. AFGSC conducts live Minuteman launches twice a year from Vandenberg out over the Pacific Ocean to assure the...

Slow Season for Hurricane Hunters

The 2013 hurricane season was the slowest since 1966 for Air Force Reserve Command’s 53rd Weather Reconnaissance Squadron at Keesler AFB, Miss., according to a Dec. 17 release. The squadron, known as the hurricane hunters, flew a total of 34...