Environmental restoration officials at Eglin AFB, Fla., have recycled more than one million pounds of metal as they demilitarize some 50,000 BDU 33 and Mark 106 practice bombs. For this work, they are employing a method for the first time in the United States: using a commercial car crusher to demilitarize the dummy bombs prior to recycling the metal. “This method of demilitarizing the practice bombs costs us about $150,000 for one million pounds shredded,” said Ralph Armstrong, project manager with Eglin’s 96th Civil Engineer Group. He added, “Had we done it in a more traditional way, the cost would have been between $1 million and $2 million.” This work falls under the Air Force’s military munitions response program that makes munitions areas located off of active test ranges safe for reuse. (Eglin report by Mike Spaits)
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,…