Sixty members of the Virginia Air National Guard’s 192nd Fighter Wing are working with their active duty counterparts in the 1st Fighter Wing at Langley AFB, Va., to learn how to operate and maintain the new F-22A fighters. The Air Force is integrating the 192nd with the 1st in all but administrative control. The goal is to share the aircraft and equipment, working together. According to the Guardsmen, it is the first time they’ve been in on the ground floor with a new system. Officials expect to complete full integration of the 192nd at Langley by September 2009.
The Air Force is moving forward with a new, algorithm-driven system to help U.S. Northern Command better detect airborne threats. NORTHCOM and the North American Aerospace Defense Command, which are tasked with protecting the homeland from attack, depend on a slew of radars and other data systems to monitor U.S.…