The Air Force Gunsmith Shop has a new name and new parent unit, after 48 years under the umbrella of the Air Education and Training Command and its predecessor organizations. It will still reside in its secure bunker facilities at Lackland AFB, Tex., but it is now part of Air Force Materiel Command. AETC officials call it a good match since the small unit of 11 personnel—now comprising the Air Force Gunsmith Integrated Product Team—has had AFMC as its approval authority for 30 years. Organizationally, the team now falls under the 542nd Armament Sustainment Group at Warner Robins Air Logistics Center, Robins AFB, Ga.
NASA, SpaceX, and United Launch Alliance are all preparing to launch their next-gen rockets from Florida’s Space Coast, two of them before the year is out. One is expected to liberate the U.S. launch enterprise from its reliance on Russian-made RD-180 engines, while all three rockets could eventually carry astronaut crews.