Now the Ceremony

Oct. 18, 2007

Air Force Gen. Kevin Chilton officially took charge of US Strategic Command on Oct. 3, but DOD held the command transfer ceremony at Offutt AFB, Neb., Oct. 17 after Defense Secretary Robert Gates returned from recent travels. Donna Miles reports that Gates said Chilton’s “trail-blazing career” would serve well at STRATCOM. Chilton called his new command the “most responsive combatant command in the US arsenal.”

Hypersonic Missile Defense ‘A Few Years’ Away, Top Brass Tell Senators

May 18, 2022

The Senate Armed Services subcommittee on strategic forces heard testimony from the Defense Department’s top missile defense leaders and demanded to know why the Missile Defense Agency's proposed $9.6 billion fiscal 2023 budget will not yield more reliable defense against hypersonic weapons already being fielded by adversaries, including Russia on…

Challenges for ‘Stagnated’ PME Include Lack of Intellectual Diversity or Data to Best Apply Skills

May 18, 2022

U.S. professional military education needs to be more rigorous and data-driven, and the military services need to do a better job of actually utilizing the skills service members learn through PME, lawmakers, academics, and Pentagon officials said in a congressional hearing. Summing up the concerns, Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.) laid…

USAF Leaders on Hypersonics, B-21 Production, the E-7 Transition, and Buying Fewer HH-60s

May 18, 2022

With a repeat of a hypersonic missile test coming up in the summer and the potential to speed up production of the B-21 Raider, the Air Force is “committed” to putting hypersonic missiles on its long-range bombers, said Lt. Gen. Duke Z. Richardson, the top USAF acquisition official. Air Force…

New Pentagon Office Overseeing Data and AI Nearing FOC

May 18, 2022

As the Defense Department looks to accelerate use of artificial intelligence and to connect its sensors and shooters into one massive data network, a new office overseeing those efforts will reach full operating capability in the coming weeks. The office of the chief data and artificial intelligence officer (CDAO) will…

Kendall: ‘Race For Technological Superiority With China’ Warrants Divestments

May 17, 2022

A record investment in research and development by the Department of the Air Force will help the United States win the long-term technology race with China, even while shrinking the fleet size before a possible mid-decade Taiwan contingency, Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall said May 17. “With the Air Force,…

In CNAS-Led Taiwan Wargame, No Air Superiority, No Quick Win

May 17, 2022

In a 2027 invasion of Taiwan by China, neither side achieves air superiority, both sides take heavy losses, and China finds little hope for a fait accompli, according to a recent wargame run by the Center for a New American Security. The game highlighted the advances China has made and…

Decision on New F-35 Engines Predicted in 2024 Defense Budget

May 17, 2022

Whether the F-35 fighter will get new engines from the Air Force’s cutting-edge Adaptive Engine Transition Program is a question that needs to be resolved at the Defense Department level, Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall told lawmakers May 17—and he anticipates an answer in the 2024 budget.

Why a Continuing Resolution in 2023 Would Be ‘Particularly Negative’

May 17, 2022

Department of the Air Force leaders have not been shy in the past about voicing the issues caused by the use of continuing resolutions to fund the federal government. But addressing the lawmakers responsible for passing an annual budget, Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall made the case that a CR…

ARRW Flies at Hypersonic Speeds in First Successful Test

May 16, 2022

The Air Force conducted its first successful test of the Air-launched Rapid Response Weapon, or ARRW, on May 14, snapping a streak of three consecutive failed tests and giving the beleaguered hypersonics program a much needed boost. Off the coast of Southern California, the AGM-183A ARRW separated from the wing…

Now the Ceremony

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