The House on Thursday approved H.R. 933, full-year continuing appropriations legislation that includes funding for the Defense Department and other federal agencies for the rest of Fiscal 2013. House members approved the Senate-amended version of H.R. 933 by a vote...

The Defense Department will take an additional two weeks to analyze the impact of the newly passed continuing spending legislation before it issues furlough notices to its civilian employees, announced Pentagon Press Secretary George Little on Thursday. “We have not...

The Air Force Energy Strategic Plan, released on Thursday, builds on the Air Force's existing energy posture to incorporate energy security and operational energy into the service's strategic energy priorities, goals, and objectives. The plan shifts the service towards a greater focus on overall operational efficiency versus merely addressing consumption. "We may not always be able to control exactly how much we fly, but we can control substantially how much fuel we use for each amount of flying we do," Jamie Morin, the Air Force's acting undersecretary, told reporters during an energy roundtable in the Pentagon on March 21. The new direction lays out four priorities: improve resiliency, reduce demand, assure supply, and foster an energy-aware culture. With these in mind, the Air Force will assess opportunities to make changes in flying and training operations to use less fuel, work more aggressively with private industry on renewable energy facilities, and integrate energy awareness in professional development and technical training, states the plan. "We are not, and will not, accept the notion that one has to choose between energy efficiency and mission accomplishment, said Morin. (Air Force Energy Strategic Plan, caution, large-sized file.) (See also Energy Horizons Released.)

The Air Force exceeded its goal for decreasing consumption of aviation fuel by 10 percent three years ahead of schedule, said the service’s acting undersecretary, Jamie Morin, on Thursday. Back in 2006, the service announced its intent to curb aviation...

Air Force Reserve Command’s 307th Bomb Wing, a B-52 unit at Barksdale AFB, La., is now certified for the bomber’s nuclear mission following completion of an initial nuclear surety inspection earlier this month, announced wing officials. “This certification is a...

Air Mobility Command this week relieved Col. Tim Bush of command of the 319th Air Base Wing at Grand Forks AFB, N.D., due to his failure to meet the service’s physical fitness standards, according to a command release. “Bush was...

The Colorado Air National Guard activated the 233rd Space Group earlier this month during a ceremony at Greeley ANG Station. The group falls under the state’s 140th Wing, which is headquartered at Buckley Air Force Base. The new unit grew...

With sequestration barreling down, the Defense Department needs to have a strong leader who will carry the Pentagon through these austere times, said panel members at an American Enterprise Institute event in Washington, D.C., on Thursday. Since Defense Secretary Chuck...

Pentagon leaders need to change their mindset when it comes to rebalancing military compensation, said Todd Harrison, senior fellow for defense budget studies at the Center for Security and Budgetary Assessments in Washington, D.C. Speaking at an American Enterprise Institute...

Royal Air Force Squadron Leader Frankie Buchler this week became the first international student pilot to complete a sortie in the F-35 strike fighter, announced officials at Eglin AFB, Fla., home of the F-35 schoolhouse, on Thursday. Buchler, who is...