Less than a week after a heated exchange with Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) over the A-10 that had Air Force Chief Gen. Mark Welsh balling his fists in visible frustration, Welsh told reporters he believes the Air Force’s relationship with Congress is “very good” in many ways. “I don’t think there’s a real problem, overall, that we see, at all,” Welsh said on Monday. When asked about Sen. Lindsey Graham’s (R-S.C.) comments during the same Senate Armed Services Committee in which he asked why the Air Force, and leadership specifically, seem to get into so many fights with Congress, Welsh said, “I do wish we had heard that in some forum other than a hearing, because that was the first we’ve heard that.” However, Welsh also said, “every now and then it’s good to remind myself that it’s good to be more empathetic with my pets’ chew toys.”
Lessons from the KC-46 and F-35 will prove useful for the testing community in the years to come, said Nickolas Guertin, the nominee to be director of operational test and evaluation for the Pentagon, told the Senate Armed Services Committee on Oct. 19.