US Strategic Command chief Gen. Kevin Chilton believes that the nation is best served by maintaining a nuclear triad of land- and sea-based missiles and long-range bombers for the indefinite future. He rejects the idea that the nation is headed...

STRATCOM chief Gen. Kevin Chilton believes that the current inventory of AGM-86B Air Launched Cruise Missiles can be modified “as a bridge” to last until about 2030, he said at a Washington conference Wednesday. To replace it, he thinks a...

With the 2011 defense budget due for unveiling on Feb. 1, and with senior officials such as Adm. Mike Mullen, the JCS Chairman, warning of tough fiscal times to come for defense , Washington analysts are struggling to factor in...

The belief that Air Force networks can be protected by preventing the enemy from penetrating them is an idea no longer viable, the service’s chief information officer said Thursday. “The ‘Maginot Line’ defense of protecting the network, quite frankly, is...

Even US Strategic Command has to be mindful of the defense industrial base. US STRATCOM chief Gen. Kevin Chilton said he would “flag” two areas of the industrial base as essential to his mission. One is the continued production of...

Air Mobility Command officials said Thursday that AMC transports have already logged more than 473 sorties to Haiti since Jan. 13 as part of the massive international relief effort there. C-130s and C-17s have brought nearly 2,250 tons of food,...

The Air Force has awarded Lockheed Martin a $245 million contract for lot 8 production of the JASSM cruise missile. The company will build a total of about 160 missiles for USAF and foreign military sales customers during this production...

Lockheed Martin announced Thursday that its JASSM cruise missile performed successfully during its most recent flight test on Jan. 12 at White Sands Missile Range, N.M. Company spokeswoman Heather Kelly said a B-52 bomber released the missile which then “successfully...

According to a new paper, Deloitte aerospace analysts believe the aerospace and defense industry faces “lean times ahead” as DOD budgets flatten and personnel costs continue to rise. And, they say that RDT&E will receive “an increasingly smaller slice of...

Lockheed Martin recently inducted the second C-5B transport aircraft into its plant in Marietta, Ga., for fitting with new engines and additional upgrades. This aircraft is the fifth C-5 overall to go in for the new gear under the C-5...

The Air Force has named the four recipients of the 2009 Lance P. Sijan Air Force Leadership Award. They are: Lt. Col. Roger A. Sherman, assigned to Peterson AFB, Colo., senior officer category; Capt. Rachel M. Phillips, Sembach Annex, Germany,...

The Air Force has signed an "agreement to lease" with Fotowatio Renewable Ventures, an important step to creating the largest crystalline photovoltaic solar project in North America on the grounds of Edwards AFB, Calif. Renewable Ventures, a leading independent solar power producer, now has exclusive access to the proposed development site, a 3,288 acre parcel of land, to conduct the necessary environmental studies and other assessments. The company also has the first option to lease the parcel once the studies are complete, according to Air Force Real Property Agency officials. Envisioned is a solar plant capable of producing up to 500 megawatts of energy, enough to power nearly 89,000 homes. Lease execution will likely occur in late 2012, with construction starting in 2013. Negotiations began late last year. This project is part of the Pentagon's enhanced use lease initiative that allows partnerships with private industry. (AFRPA release)

The Pentagon has named John James to lead the Congressionally directed effort to return civilians incorporated under the National Security Personnel System back to pre-NSPS personnel systems by 2012. Congress repealed the NSPS with the 2010 defense authorization act. According to the DOD announcement, James, who had been serving as a senior executive with Naval Sea Systems Command, will "oversee the design and implementation of an enterprise-wide performance management system, hiring flexibilities, and a DOD Workforce Incentive Fund." The announcement also noted that the process would proceed "deliberately and cautiously, without unnecessary delay."

Air Sorties in Southwest Asia, Jan. 19, 2010 Sortie Type OIF OEF OIF/OEF Total YTD ISR 30 34 64 1,099 CAS/Armed Recon 14 80 94 1,773 Airlift 135 135 2,931 Air refueling 43 43 820 Total 336 6,623 OIF=Operation Iraqi...