National Guard Bureau Chief Lt. Gen. H. Steven Blum praised the efforts of thousands of Army and Air National Guard troops pressed into service in Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, and other states as a result of Hurricane Katrina. Blum said the response proved the Guard could handle the federal mission (deployments to some 40 countries) as well as stateside crises “at the same time,” without putting at risk the overseas mission or homeland security.
The Air Force still needs more than 300 combat squadrons, but the biggest priority is not number of squadrons but capability, Chief of Staff Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr. said Sept. 22. He also suggested the records set by the Next Generation Air Dominance prototype likely have more to do…